Published 11:00 IST, December 10th 2019
'Boris ko humein jitana hai': Conservatives call to British Indians ahead of elections
Prime Minister Boris Johnson's Conservative party has attempted yet again, to woo the British Indians for support just ahead of the national general elections.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson's Conservative party has yet again attempted, to woo the British Indians for support just ahead of the general elections in Britain on December 12. Before Thursday polls, the Conservatives called the Indian voters by circulating a video in Hindi featuring the Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi along with Johnson. This idea to target the British Indians was first seen in 2015, then in 2017 and now again for the most recent elections.
The video which was also shared by the Conservative Parliamentary Candidate of North West Cambridgeshire, Shailesh Vara for the1.5 million-strong community to vote for Conservatives. The latest video says, Boris ko humein jitana hain, and shows images of PM Modi, Indian high commissioner Ruchi Ghanashyam and many other Indian leaders. Ideologically, the closeness between Bhartiya Janta Party with the Conservatives have also been seen in recent years.
Conservatives and British Indians
Under the leadership of David Cameron in 2015, an initiative was taken by Conservatives with a duet song was composed to appeal to voters to repose their trust on Cameron called, Neela hai Asmaan. And in 2017, former Prime Minister of UK, Theresa May also released a video called Theresa ke saath where the May was seen in Indian traditional dress alongside PM Modi. Johnson's closeness with the Indian community in Britain was also seen in his recent visit to BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir in Neasden, north-west London on December 7.
During his visit, Johnson also recalled his conversations with PM Modi. Furthermore, Johnson made it categorically clear that anti-India sentiment would not be tolerated in the UK.
The UK PM said, "I know Prime Minister Modi is building a new India. And, we in the UK government will support him fully in his endeavour. British Indians have played a vital role in helping the Conservatives win elections in the past. When I told Narendrabhai [Modi] this, he just laughed and said Indians are always on the winning side.” He added, "There can be no place for racism or anti-India sentiment of any kind in this country".
Updated 11:17 IST, December 10th 2019