'Hindu Manifesto' released in UK ahead of elections, calls for recognition of Hindu hate & protection of temples

A collective of Hindu organisations have released a ‘Hindu manifesto’ ahead of the elections in the United Kingdom.

The so-called manifesto has made a total of seven demands to the incoming government in the UK after the elections. The demands include the recognition of hatred against Hindus and the protection of temples in the UK.

The document has been released by collective ‘Hindus for Democracy’. It is a collective formed by 15 Hindu organisations, including the UK-based chapters of the BAPS Swaminarayan Sanstha, Chinmaya Mission, and the Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP), according to its website.

Sharing their demands on X (formerly Twitter), the collective said it sought “seven pledges” from the incoming government.

What’s in ‘Hindu Manifesto’ of UK?

The collective Hindus for Democracy has sought the following seven pledges from the incoming British government:

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2. Recognising anti-Hindu hate as a religious hate crime and proscribing those indulging in it

3. Protecting places of Hindu worship and government funds to temples

4. Access to “fairer education” by setting up Hindu faith schools and inclusion of “experts” from the community in making syllabus

5. More representation of Hindus in political parties and other public institutions

6. Addressing “issues” related to visas of Hindu priests

7. Inclusion of Hindus in social services and “supporting the elderly and disabled care”

8. Protection of “Dharmic way”

The full demands can be seen in the thread on X below.

The Hindu Manifesto (UK) 2024

The seven pledges by the Hindu community.#HinduManifesto2024 #Hindu @Conservatives @UKLabour @LibDems @TheGreenParty @reformparty_uk @Keir_Starmer @RishiSunak @EdwardJDavey @Telegraph @BBCNews @SkyNews @thetimes @Independent @GBNEWS pic.twitter.com/htglbETPOG

— Hindus4Democracy (@hindus4dmocracy) June 6, 2024

‘It’s time for change’

In a separate statement on its website, the collective said that even though the Hindus in the UK number more than 1 million and have “contributing significantly”, they are underrepresented in several areas.

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The statement further said the Hindus in the UK had to understand the power of politics and seek a change.

“We have to recognise the importance of politics, even though it’s often considered a taboo topic in our community. It’s time for change,” read the statement.

Secular body criticises ‘Hindu manifesto’

Following the publication of the so-called Hindu manifesto, the National Secular Society (NSS), a more-than-a-century old organisation advocating for secularism, criticised the document and said the incoming government should reject these demands.

The NSS said that, if realised, the demands of the Hindu organisations would hurt the work of human rights campaigners on caste- and women-related issues.

We're concerned that demands in new 'Hindu manifesto' would silence human rights campaigners, esp. on issues of #caste and #WomensRights. It's an example of the sectarianism the next government must reject to avoid the country becoming more fragmented. https://t.co/PEY7dwVsm8

— National Secular Society (@NatSecSoc) June 11, 2024

The NSS further said in a statement that the demands would stifle free speech as they would stifle any criticism of Hinduism.

“The manifesto defines ‘anti-Hindu hate’ or ‘Hinduphobia’ as ‘a set of antagonistic, destructive, and derogatory attitudes and behaviours towards Sanatana Dharma (Hinduism) and Hindus that may manifest as prejudice, fear, or hatred’. The NSS warned that this could chill free speech about Hinduism because it would prevent people from expressing negative attitudes about the religion itself, and not just its followers,” read the NSS statement.