LONDON: UK’s authorities has defended its choice to make use of £1 million of taxpayer money to erect a memorial to honour the a whole lot of hundreds of Muslim troopers from the Indian subcontinent, the Center East, North Africa, and elsewhere, who served in Britain’s armed forces within the two world wars, and subsequently.
The information in TOI sparked a robust response in India, with some saying it’s divisive, others questioning why there’s not a memorial for Hindus, Gurkhas and Sikhs, and BJP politician Swapan Dasgupta describing it as “silly, woke politics”.
A spokesperson for UK’s division for communities informed TOI: “We’re supportive of efforts to commemorate and honour the army sacrifices made for our nation by troopers from a variety of faiths, beliefs and backgrounds. These embody memorials to Sikh troopers in Leicester, Wolverhampton and on the Nationwide Memorial Arboretum; the Chattri memorial close to Brighton, which commemorates Hindu and Sikh troopers who died within the First World Struggle; and a memorial for African and Caribbean troopers in Windrush Sq., Brixton.”
Swapan Dasgupta wrote on X: “Many hundreds fought & died for King & Nation. Nonetheless, the British-Indian military that made up the majority of the forces wasn’t organised on spiritual strains. Males of all faiths fought & died…” Replying to Dasgupta’s tweet, Congressman Kamru Choudhury wrote: “We’re nonetheless looking for that one RSS man who fought for India’s Independence.”
Others wrote on X: “Why not simply Indian troopers? Why protecting on dividing an already divided world?” and “The erstwhile empire nonetheless persevering with its divisive politics”. One other mentioned: “Conservatives really feel that they misplaced the bulk Muslim vote resulting from Gaza, and at the moment are making an attempt to get one thing out.”
“Brits left India 75 yrs in the past, however their divide and rule doctrine lives on!” mentioned one other. “Wasn’t it sufficient to create Pakistan?” added one other. “The memorial is the proof of why British allowed Partition” mentioned one other.
Trupti Patel, president of the Hindu Discussion board of Britain, mentioned: “A memorial ought to signify all faiths. If there’s a Muslim one, there must be a Hindu one, a Jain one, a Parsee one – the place does it finish? We don’t imagine in dividing individuals on religion strains, reasonably in bringing individuals collectively.”
The design of the memorial has been impressed by the Mughal structure of Pakistan and Northwest India from the place most of the troopers got here who’re celebrated by the memorial. There’s to be a quote from the Quran on the backside of the column.
It is going to be within the Nationwide Memorial Arboretum in Staffordshire, the place a Sikh memorial was unveiled in Nov 2015 to honour over 124,000 Sikhs who fought for the British Indian Military within the First World Struggle
However in response to the announcement, the Sikh Federation UK branded it as “discrimination”, claiming {that a} nationwide memorial earmarked for London to honour Sikhs who fought in each world wars has nonetheless not acquired authorities funding.
The information in TOI sparked a robust response in India, with some saying it’s divisive, others questioning why there’s not a memorial for Hindus, Gurkhas and Sikhs, and BJP politician Swapan Dasgupta describing it as “silly, woke politics”.
A spokesperson for UK’s division for communities informed TOI: “We’re supportive of efforts to commemorate and honour the army sacrifices made for our nation by troopers from a variety of faiths, beliefs and backgrounds. These embody memorials to Sikh troopers in Leicester, Wolverhampton and on the Nationwide Memorial Arboretum; the Chattri memorial close to Brighton, which commemorates Hindu and Sikh troopers who died within the First World Struggle; and a memorial for African and Caribbean troopers in Windrush Sq., Brixton.”
Swapan Dasgupta wrote on X: “Many hundreds fought & died for King & Nation. Nonetheless, the British-Indian military that made up the majority of the forces wasn’t organised on spiritual strains. Males of all faiths fought & died…” Replying to Dasgupta’s tweet, Congressman Kamru Choudhury wrote: “We’re nonetheless looking for that one RSS man who fought for India’s Independence.”
Others wrote on X: “Why not simply Indian troopers? Why protecting on dividing an already divided world?” and “The erstwhile empire nonetheless persevering with its divisive politics”. One other mentioned: “Conservatives really feel that they misplaced the bulk Muslim vote resulting from Gaza, and at the moment are making an attempt to get one thing out.”
“Brits left India 75 yrs in the past, however their divide and rule doctrine lives on!” mentioned one other. “Wasn’t it sufficient to create Pakistan?” added one other. “The memorial is the proof of why British allowed Partition” mentioned one other.
Trupti Patel, president of the Hindu Discussion board of Britain, mentioned: “A memorial ought to signify all faiths. If there’s a Muslim one, there must be a Hindu one, a Jain one, a Parsee one – the place does it finish? We don’t imagine in dividing individuals on religion strains, reasonably in bringing individuals collectively.”
The design of the memorial has been impressed by the Mughal structure of Pakistan and Northwest India from the place most of the troopers got here who’re celebrated by the memorial. There’s to be a quote from the Quran on the backside of the column.
It is going to be within the Nationwide Memorial Arboretum in Staffordshire, the place a Sikh memorial was unveiled in Nov 2015 to honour over 124,000 Sikhs who fought for the British Indian Military within the First World Struggle
However in response to the announcement, the Sikh Federation UK branded it as “discrimination”, claiming {that a} nationwide memorial earmarked for London to honour Sikhs who fought in each world wars has nonetheless not acquired authorities funding.
