MP warns against protesting at Hindu Temple and tells Hindus to leave defence of a Brent Temple to Police. War between faiths rages on after Leicester riots

Leicestershire constabulary had to cope with two large gatherings of young men from opposing faiths with reduced numbers, due to large swathes of their officers being seconded to London.

Police officers were harassed, abused and subjected to violence and glass bottle missiles as they bravely attempted to keep to rival faith groups apart, in alarming scenes of interfaith violence.

Video: Police being bullied by large pack of Muslim rioters.

The riots began as Hindu and Muslim youth and young men in Leicester allowed years of discontent with one another to spill out on the streets.  Read more (here)

By the end of the night their were several skirmishes within Leicester with glass bottles missiles being thrown from both groups at their counterparts, A Hindu man was hospitalized after he had been beaten up  and had his car smashed.  There were various other attacks between men of the two opposing faiths that same night.

Video: Muslim and Hindu Rioters take over Leicester streets on Sunday morning (18th September) and police seem overwhelmed. In the video Hindu men attack two Muslim men until stopped by local police.

Leicestershire police tried bravely to control the situation but their stretched service could not cope with the size and scale of the rioting groups. This meant that the riots continued into the next day.

Video: Woefully small police presence fails to cope with large groups of Muslim and Hindu rioters – brave police officers needed a larger team.

25 police officers and a police dog were injured in the riots that occurred on the Saturday.

On Sunday 18th September, Muslim rioters had their own ‘peaceful demonstration’ in which men could be seeing climbing on a temple before aghast Hindu parishioner.  Religious flags were ripped off the temple roof and burned while Muslim rioters laughed and jeered. Some Hindu parishioners including children were trapped inside the building while the trouble outside ensued.  There is evidence that a concientious Muslim group offered help to the trapped Hindus and helped rescue them from the Temple eventually.

Video: A Hindu flag with Hindu religious symbol ‘Om’ is burnt.

On Sunday however, Police were better able to get a handle over the situation, as they called back all staff seconded to London to protect visitors to Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral and drew in further support from neighbouring constabularies.

By Sunday evening 19 arrests had taken place and one man named Amos Noronha of Illingworth Road, Leicester had been arrested.  he was later sentenced to ten months for possession of an offensive weapon on Monday 18th September, after pleading guilty.

Video: A car is smashed and the Hindu driver is attacked by Muslims in East Leicester.

18 other people in total were arrested on Sunday night for a number of offences including affray, common assault, possession of an offensive weapon and violent disorder.

Since then, the total number of arrests has risen to 47 people.  though most arrests were from men residing in Leicester.  However several arrests were of men from outside the city with Birmingham being named as one of the cities that commuters came from.

Video: Muslim youth travel from Birmingham to join riots in Leicester shouting Allah-hu-Akbar

Temporary Chief Constable Rob Nixon said:

“This quick charge reflects the hard work the officers have put in, with overwhelming evidence against Noronha.

“The sentence is reflective of the fact that this was a serious offence and he has ended up with time in prison.”

Adam Yusuf (21 yrs), received a suspended jail sentence after admitting possessing a knife at a march on Sunday.

Police have charged a further five men in relation to disorder in Leicester.

The five new men charged are:

• Paresh Pravin, 25, of Langford Way, Leicester. He is charged with drink driving, after being arrested on 6 September.
• Akshay Jiva, 27, of Rotherby Avenue, Leicester. He is charged with possession of an offensive weapon, after being arrested on 7 September.
• Aslan Ibrahim, 28, Canon Street, Leicester. He is charged with making threats to kill, after being arrested on 7 September.
• Rahul Manikane, 21, of Clevedon Crescent, Leicester. He is charged with drink driving, after being arrested on 10 September.
• Sanket Dansukh, 26, of Mornington Street, Leicester. He is charged with possession of an offensive weapon, after being arrested on 11 September.

Leaders from both faiths and wider faiths are uniting against the violence (click here) and are calling for calm. However, the Daily Telegraph also informs us that an Islamic hate preacher has been involved in stirring up trouble (click here).

The Leicester violence seems to be spreading and has already impacted in Birmingham where a 200-strong masked mob surround Durga Bhawan Hindu temple, Spon Lane, Smethwick. Riot police donned helmets as they were being pelted with bottles and firecrackers during the ‘peaceful protests on the evening of 20th September 2022.

The protest was said to be in defiance of a visting Hindi preacher who was to give a sermon. The invite to Indian activist Sadhvi Rithambara has been described as provocative in the aftermath of recent tensions in Leicester. Mr Rithambara is said to be an exponent of Hindutva (Hindu facism) with links to Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), an all-male Hindu nationalist volunteer group, often described as a paramilitary organisation and to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP_, the ruling political party in India which has been accused of passing policies and pursuing a religiously divisive agenda.

The visit was called off and Sandwell Police reported Rithambara was “leaving the country”, a decision which is believed to have curbed more people from joining the protest.

Juliet Chowdhry, Trustee for British Asian Christian Association, said:

“The ease in which gathering of Hindus and Muslim youth against one another is taking place in the UK is a very worrying sign.

“Peace-keepers from both communities and wider communities are trying their best to ease tensions, but it would seem this is at this juncture to no avail.

“Scenes in Leicester and Birmingham two of the larger cities in the UK is a poor indictment of community/interfaith harmony in Britain.

“The prevent strategy has failed.

“I fear that foreign more radical ideologies are consuming our younger generation through social media, this is a very disturbing and dangerous trajectory for the UK.

“More must be done to eradicate fundamentalism and its exponents from social media.

“The UK needs to adopt stronger laws and practices in regards to hate speech.

“People of good conscience of all faiths need to work more closely towards eradicating this unnecessary hatred within our communities.”

Juliet Chowdhry called for Christians across the world to pray for a restoration of peace in the UK.

British Asian Christian Association is a charity that provides advocacy and aid to Christians in South Asia. We write articles that inform on political and social matters that affect Christians and other groups across the globe. As a group we are very involved in interfaith harmony projects with intent to make this world a safer more connected place.  We also provide disaster recovery assistance to people of all nationalities and diversities across the globe, where we can.  If you would like to donate towards our work please do so (here).

Video: 200-strong Muslim mob riot before Hindu temple in Birmingham