Post Leicester, report says UK Hindus 'smart, well behaved'
Darpan News Desk IANS, 31 Oct, 2022 11:06 AM
London, Oct 31 (IANS) Close on the heels of Britain getting its first Hindu Prime Minister, and launch of an independent inquiry into the recent Hindu-Muslim clashes in Leicester, a report in a UK-based daily says that "Britain's Hindus are smart, rich and very well behaved".
"There are just 329 Hindus in UK prisons, the lowest of any religious cohort, and they are better qualified than the Christians and earn more. Now Rishi Sunak, a second-generation son of a GP (general practitioner), is in No 10," The Times report, released on Sunday, said.
The most recent census, says the report, shows that 15.4 per cent of British Indians, nearly 50 per cent of whom are Hindus, were in professional and managerial roles, the highest proportion of any group.
It further adds that 59 per cent of British Hindus reported having a degree of higher education, nearly double the 30 per cent of Christians.
By 2012, Hindus living in London had a net wealth of 277,400 pounds (including property), and now the country's Indian-origin Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and his wife Akshata Murty alone are worth an estimated 730 million pounds ($844 million).
The couple's net worth is roughly twice that of King Charles' estimated 370 million pound personal fortune.
Reacting to the report, Lord Rami Ranger CBE, who hails from Punjab, tweeted: "Great tribute to the Indian values that make us peaceful, prosperous and progressive."
"British Hindus Contribute, Co-Operate and Co-Exist. Hindus believe in hard work, oneness & unity, governed by Dharma. Data does not Lie," Britain-based Hindu group, Insight UK, tweeted.
The group, along with 15 other reported Hindu organisations in the UK, has been at the forefront calling for boycott of city mayor Peter Soulsby's inquiry into the east Leicester clashes, following an India-Pakistan cricket match in August.
Most Hindus are unhappy with the appointment of hate crime expert Dr Chris Allen as the head of the probe panel, whom they call 'biased'.
"Leicester Violence: Can we expect an unbiased independent review? @CityMayorLeic Peter Soulsby has appointed Dr Chris Allen to carry out the 'independent' review. Both Mr Soulsby & Mr Allen have previously given their opinions baselessly blaming #Hindus...," Insight UK tweeted, calling for an "unbiased" review.
In the 1951 Census, just 624 people with South Asian heritage were recorded as living in Leicester. Now, 70 years on, the city has one of the highest proportions of British South Asians.
England and Wales are now home to 983,000 Hindus, and 47 per cent of the British Hindus live in London, accounting for 5 per cent of the capital's population, says the Times report.
Hindu migration to the UK started in 1947 after India's Partition. In 1970s, more Hindus came to Britain from East Africa after then Ugandan leader Idi Amin expelled Asians.
The former Chancellor again batted away calls for tax cuts before inflation is under control, saying "we need to have a grown up conversation". At the event in Westminster, he also heaped praise on Boris Johnson, describing him as "one of the most remarkable people I have ever met" who has a "good heart" - but it was "not working" any more.
The vacancy was created when the incumbent Boris Johnson lost the confidence of his party MPs after a series of scandals, and resigned on Thursday. 11 candidate have since thrown their hats into the ring. Among them, Sunak, who chancellor of the exchequer before he resigned last Tuesday, and Suella Fernandes Braverman, who is of Goan descent and is still serving as caretaker attorney general.
Balwani faced 10 counts of wire fraud and two counts of conspiracy to commit wire fraud. After a three-month trial, a jury has found him guilty of all 12 counts. He now faces up to 20 years in prison for each count, The Verge reported late on Thursday.
But the public liking for him was dented when this year he introduced taxes to reduce the government's heavy borrowings. This was followed by controversy over his wife avoiding paying taxes in Britain and instead doing so at a lower rate in India from her dividends from shares in Infosys, the Bangalore-based software giant founded by her father N.R. Narayana Murthy.
Addressing the media outside 10, Downing Street, the 58-year-old embattled British leader, who has faced controversies galore in his 1,079 days in power, said: "It is clearly now the will of the parliamentary Conservative Party that there should be a new leader of the party and therefore a new Prime Minister."
According to state broadcaster NHK, the incident took place at around 11. 30 a.m. (local time) near the Yamatosaidaiji Station in Nara city while the 67-year-old former leader was making a speech for a Liberal Democratic Party candidate's election campaign.
