A meeting was held at Heston Community Centre on Tuesday evening 11th April 2017 to show that different communities of Southall and adjoining areas are rejecting the divisive comments made by Ealing Southall MP Virendra Sharma.

The members of different faith groups stated Virendra Sharma should NOT be making these types of statements. They are united in opposition to them.

Earlier this year on the topic of Kashmir in Parliament, Virendra Sharma was the ONLY MP to call Pakistan a terrorist state.

These comments are NOT ACCEPTABLE for the MP representing Ealing Southall - different ethnic communities working and living together in harmony.

He should provide evidence for his comments or apologise and withdraw them. He has chosen to do neither and is standing for re-election again.

The local residents need to ensure that a divisive person like Virendra Sharma is NOT re-elected again.

Virendra Sharma should remember his own words (from a few years earlier). The comments he made against Baroness Warsi (below) now apply to him.

This statement is “causing disturbance within the communities and also dividing the communities”.

“Most disgraceful statement from any political leader. I condemn that. I am sure the communities will be condemning as well.”

The meeting was organised by Cllr. Nisar Malik, Mayor of Hounslow during 2015/2016 and MD of Haji Baba Ltd. What exactly did Virendra Sharma say on Kashmir and Pakistan in the House of Common on the 19th of January 2017?

The Kashmiris living on the Indian side have more freedom and more rights than people living on the Pakistan side.

That is a big claim considering what we see in the news.

He goes on to say “Pakistan is the biggest sponsor of terrorism”.

He is the ONLY British MP to hold these divisive views.

Fazal Mahmood from the Central Jamia Masjid, Southall and Chairman of the Southall Faith Forum which consists of people from Gurdwaras, Churches, Mosques and Mandirs said:

“It was raised at the forum meeting and we felt his comments undermine our unity.”

“As a Southall MP Virendra Sharma should be focusing on local issues”

Mohammad Ata Chaudhry, President of Pakistan Welfare Association, Hounslow, said “I am coming from the angle of community cohesion; this is very disgraceful for somebody who has spent most of his life in Southall. Being a councillor and then a MP for an area which has got a huge Pakistani and Muslim population and to say things like this is just disgraceful”.

“Is Virendra Sharma an Indian? Or is Virendra Sharma a British person? Who is he representing? That question needs to be asked from Virendra? Do we really want to vote for such a person? Would your families vote for that person? We need to tell our friends and families very clearly what kind of a person he is. He is against community cohesion. He is against the Pakistani people. He is against the British people because he is running the Indian agenda which is – divide and be anti-Pakistani and anti-Muslim. That won’t go here as an MP.”

Sikander Hasan from Cranford mosque said “we are very disappointed by the remarks made by Virendra Sharma. We as a community must show Virendra Sharma that we will not tolerate anybody attacking Pakistan.”

Those who spoke out against Virendra Sharma’s comments included:

• Cllr. Nisar Malik, Mayor of Hounslow during 2015/2016 and MD of Haji Baba Ltd
• Avtar Singh Buttar, Treasurer at the Sri Guru Singh Sabha, Southall
• Mohammed Hanif Khan, Chairman of the AbuBakr Mosque, Southall
• Fazal Mahmood, Central Jamia Masjid, Southall and Chairman of the Southall Faith Forum
• Mr Asif Khawaja, chairman of the Jamia Masjid, Southall
• Mehmood Khan, Secretary of the Jamia Masjid, Southall
• Rashid Bhatti, Gen Sec of West London Mosques
• Sikander Hassan, Heathrow Jamia Masjid, Cranford
• Mohammad Ata Chaudhry, President of Pakistan Welfare Association, Hounslow
• Mohammed Ata Ur Rehman Chaudhry, President of PWA Hounslow
• Mohammed Waqar Rehnma, UKIM
• Raja Sikander Khan, Chairman of Global Pakistan & Kashmir Supreme Council
• Tariq Ramzan Chaudhry, ex-Chairman of UKPCCI – (UK Pakistan Chamber of Commerce and Industry)
• Professor Abdulla Rana from Sri Lanka
• Mr Tahir, Pakistan People’s Party
• Tariq Dar, Chairman Pakistan Community Centre, Willesden
• Cllr Gul Nawaz, ex-Mayor of Reading
• Riaz Malik, President of Nawaz Lahore UK
• Professor Abdulla Rana from Sri Lanka