Group urges voters to get to the Polls
THE Hindu community could play a crucial role in some key marginal seats this general election, says the Hindu Forum of Britain.
Hindus in Britain number well over 750,000 and the group is urging them to ‘make their vote count.’
Though dispersed throughout the UK, sizable numbers of Hindus are concentrated in certain areas like the suburbs of London and the south east; Leicester, the West Midlands, Greater Manchester and Yorkshire.
In some of these areas the Hindu vote may have a significant impact on who represents them and addresses their concern in Parliament.
But the Hindu Forum of Britain said many British Hindus still feel that Government and decision-makers are failing to address many of their concerns, despite being the third largest faith group.
The group is implementing a campaign to encourage the community to engage with their prospective parliamentary candidates and to air their views before making an informed decision as to which party to vote for.
As part of the campaign the HFB will be distributing information through temples, community centres and other mediums to raise awareness on the importance of voting.
Arjan Vekaria, President of the Hindu Forum of Britain, said: “Voting is a most important civic right yet large numbers of Hindus abstained from voting in the past but in this general election, more than any other, the Hindu vote could be a deciding factor, so we urge Hindus to get out and vote intelligently. Our campaign aims to encourage Hindus to make their vote count.
“Like many other communities, Hindus are concerned about access to public services, health, education, employment’ security, crime, housing, environment, etc., but there are also many other specific issues that hampers community cohesion. Hindus are a silent but very influential minority yet many feel that the country’s politicians and decision makers largely ignore their concerns so with the parties bring so close Hindus should use this opportunity to engage with their parliamentarians, air their concerns and get some commitment to resolving issues that prevent them from practicing their religious rights and beliefs.”
