Conservative candidate attacks Sikh turbans in UK speech

LONDON: Campaigners have called on the Conservative Party to immediately suspend their candidate, Philip Dunne, over a "disgusting, racist" comment he made towards Labour opponent Kuldip Sahota at a hustings.

At the St Laurence's Church in Church Stretton, Ludlow candidate Dunne accused Sahota, a turban-wearing Sikh, of "talking through his turban". Sahota, on the other hand, said he was offended by the comment and has urged the Conservative Party to investigate.

Concluding his speech, Sahota told the audience that he was offended by the racist comments from his Conservative opponent.

He said: "He jumped up and said, 'sorry', he apologised. But he didn't apologise straight away. He was on the microphone a couple of times after his remark and did not apologise.

"My turban is my faith; to offend my turban is to offend my faith. This was in a church, a house of God. I was shocked and deeply hurt that someone who was an MP for 14 years would make such a derogatory comment about the Sikh faith.

"This is extremely insulting to the Sikh community. These are the kind of offensive comments I remember receiving in the 1970s. They have no place in modern Britain and they certainly have no place in our Parliament.

"I hope the Conservatives will investigate this matter immediately.”

Tan Dhesi, who became the first turban-wearing Sikh MP in the 2017 election, has called for Dunne to be expelled from his party. “This disgusting, racist remark wasn’t just made by a Conservative Parliamentary candidate.

"It was made by someone who was a Conservative MP for 14 years, who has served as a minister in several Conservative governments, and this year was even given an honour by the Conservative leadership. He is not a random candidate in an unwinnable seat. He is a senior Conservative figure who could be re-elected.

“This attack on the turban, which we consider a crown, is an attack on the entire Sikh community, who fought and died for Britain wearing those same turbans.

“The Conservatives must suspend him immediately and strip him of his honour. Anything less than that will be condoning blatant racism.”

Dunne was a minister in David Cameron and Theresa May’s governments. This year, he was appointed to the Privy Council in the 2019 New Years Honours List.

In footage that went viral, Dhesi recently challenged UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson in the Parliament over the latter's comments promoting racist rhetoric towards minorities, including remarks targeting Sikhs, such as calling Sikh men “towel head”.

Now, however, one of Johnson’s own MPs has used offensive language about Sikh turbans.

Sikh Federation (UK) Chair Bhai Amrik Singh said: “The Conservative candidate in Ludlow offended the Labour candidate, Kuldip Singh Sahota when he made an inappropriate and offensive comment about his sacred Sikh turban.

"This is nothing less than blatant racism, but we have complete silence from the Conservative Party leadership.

“Mainstream political parties and all religious leaders have a collective duty to stamp out all forms of racism irrespective of the perpetrator or victim and leave those making offensive comments in no doubt that their behaviour is unacceptable and take firm action against those peddling hate.”