Conservative London Mayor Candidate vows to stop “unruly” farmers protests

The Conservative candidate for London Mayor, Shaun Bailey, has pledged to ban protests from taking place in London in support of the farmers protest in India.

The mayoral candidate made the comments in a Zoom meeting with the High Commissioner of India, Gaitri Issar Kumar, on Thursday 18^th March, according to Asian Voice magazine.

He said that the “unruly demonstrations that have taken place outside the Indian High Commission are absolutely unacceptable” and that if he is elected as mayor, he will do “everything in [his] power to offer protection for staff and visitors”.

“If necessary, this would include banning demonstrations that are deemed to put staff and visitors at risk.”

The Sikh Press Association asked Bailey to explain his comments, but he declined to do so.

The vast majority of people who attended protests in London in support of farmers in India over the past few months are from the Sikh community, many of whom own ancestral agricultural land in India, so this is a topic very close to the Sikh community in London.

The ongoing protest in Delhi, which is being hailed as the largest protest in the world, has come under fire from other UK politicians and was the topic of a recent heated debate in the UK House of Commons, due to the actions of the Indian government.

Many British politicians have already acknowledged that press freedom is being stifled by India, and journalists and activists are being illegally detained and tortured. Tear gas, water cannons and police batons have been used against peaceful protesters and internet services have been cut off in Delhi. The protests have garnered support from the likes of climate change activist Greta Thunberg, singer Rihanna, UK-based humanitarian charity Khalsa Aid, Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau and British agricultural union The Landworkers’ Alliance, and many others.

Protests organised by Sikhs in London have been peaceful, with no reported use of violent or intimidation towards any staff at the Indian High Commission, despite Bailey’s comments. In contrast, a Metropolitan Police Officer was caught on camera punching a peaceful protester at a protest in London in December, and a pro-Government car rally by Indian government supporters in London was planned to conclude outside Sri Guru Singh Sabha Gurdwara in Southall, a Sikh place of worship; one of the busiest in Europe. Bailey is not reported to have made any mention of these acts of aggression in his discussion with the Indian High Commissioner.

His comments drew anger from the Sikh community in the UK. Sikh activist group Raids, shared the news on Instagram and called on the community to make the comments from this “India-influenced candidate” aware to those who are eligible to vote in the mayoral election.

Others pointed out Bailey’s hypocrisy for supporting the Black Lives Matter protests which took place under the same COVID restrictions in London and accused him of not being fit for office.

The Sikh Press Association, which is headquartered in London, has been sharing news and notifying national and regional media about these comments and will continue to seek comment on this matter from Bailey’s office.