Religious violence has erupted in the British Midlands, and appears to be spreading. Communalist violence first erupted in the city of Leicester – about 100 miles north of London – between British Asian youths of Indian-Hindu and Pakistani-Muslim descent. For weeks, hundreds – if not thousands – of young men in masks and balaclavas have been taking to the streets, after trouble flared in August following Pakistan’s defeat to India in a cricket match. 

Now the violence appears to be spreading to the nearby industrial town of Smethwick, with one man arrested following a protest at the gates of a Hindu temple, following a gathering of around 100 people. Fireworks were also thrown at police. There are claims and counter-claims. The Muslim community blame Hindu nationalism imported from India, and the Hindu community blame Islamism imported from Pakistan.

After the initial cricket match, large crowds of UK-born men of Indian descent draped in Indian flags began celebrating, with chants of ‘Pakistan murdabad’ (‘death to Pakistan’) being heard. UK-born men of Pakistani descent, in turn, chanted ‘Pakistan Zinabad’ (‘long live Pakistan’) and ‘Modi kuta’ (‘Modi dog’, a reference to the incumbent Prime Minister in India) during later incidents. At least one Hindu temple was also attacked in Leicester.

This has been years in the making, and long-standing hostility has been added to by the constant drip feed of information coming out of India and Pakistan, from the conflict in Kashmir, to discrimination against the Hindu community in Pakistan, to discrimination against the Muslim community in India, with Hindu nationalists inspired by the now-dominant Bharatiya Janata Party (‘Indian People’s Party’), with Islamism having risen in Pakistan.

Local MP, Claudia Webbe, has warned that clashes will spread beyond Leicester to other towns and cities without central government and police intervention, as reported in The Guardian. It would be wrong to claim the violence is primarily the fault of Hindu nationalists. Instead, it appears to be the consequence of years of hostility, the same hostility which necessitated the partition of India in the 1940s into Hindu- and Muslim-dominant states.

While Hindu and Muslim leaders have issued a joint statement calling for unity and calm, it is doubtful that towns and cities like Leicester can really be called harmonious communities at all. An uneasy tension has existed in such places for decades, with riots between ethnic minority communities having exploded several times over the last few years. But now social media is fanning the flames of hatred as never before.

Meanwhile, media in South Asian has further stirred up tensions between these two largely endogamous communities. Now the governments in India and Pakistan have spoken up as well. These latest interventions could exacerbate ongoing tensions, with the Indian Ministry of External Affairs condemning “violence perpetrated against the Indian community in Leicester and vandalisation of premises and symbols of Hindu religion.” 

In turn, the Pakistan High Commission in London issued a statement condemning “the campaign of violence and intimidation that has been unleashed against the Muslims of the area. This is not the first time such Islamophobic incidents have been reported in Leicester.” The fact people have allegedly been travelling from other UK cities to take part is increasing fears the violence will spread beyond the Midlands.

Faith leaders issued a warning that the unrest “will spread all over Britain”. Hindu Council UK told The Telegraph: “Religious leaders have continued to call for calm but the youths… It’s very difficult. You can’t control them. It’s crazy. It’s going everywhere. I can’t bring myself to say that it will come to London because we want to stop it somehow.” There are reports that protests are being planned on social media in the nearby cities of Coventry and Nottingham.

What a contrast: just as the country was mourning Her Late Majesty on Monday, pre-existing tensions between two ethnic minority communities in the UK were spilling into violence. At the same time, politicians have been fairly tight-lipped on the matter. In the meantime, communities continue to live in fear. Whether the tension could even spill over as far away as Canada is anyone’s guess. For now, police and community leaders hope it can be contained.

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