Pramod Thomas is a senior correspondent with Asian Media Group since 2020, bringing 19 years of journalism experience across business, politics, sports, communities, and international relations. His career spans both traditional and digital media platforms, with eight years specifically focused on digital journalism. This blend of experience positions him well to navigate the evolving media landscape and deliver content across various formats. He has worked with national and international media organisations, giving him a broad perspective on global news trends and reporting standards.
THE Labour Party has dragged India’s prime minister Narendra Modi into Thursday’s (1) Batley and Spen by-election by issuing a leaflet which says prime minister Boris Johnson has failed to condemn the Indian leader for his policies in Kashmir.
The literature has been widely condemned by many of Labour’s Indian origin MPs, among them Navendu Mishra, who said: “We beat our opponents based on policies, not by dog-whistle racism.”
In a constituency of 80,000, the leaflet appeared to be aimed at attracting some 8,600 Muslim voters, mostly of Pakistani origin. Labour holds the West Yorkshire seat with a slim majority of 3,525 votes.
The leaflet features a photograph of Modi and Johnson shaking hands and includes the warning: “Don’t risk a Tory MP who is not on your side.”
It adds: “The risk of voting for anyone but Labour is clear.”
Johnson, who is slammed for not being sufficiently critical of Modi, is described as: “A prime minister who is silent on human rights abuses in Kashmir.”
He is also “Accused of white washing Islamophobia”; and voters are reminded he has “compared Muslim women to letterboxes” and said, “Islam is the problem.”
There is a reference to a Sky News report: “Tory Islamophobia inquiry: Anti-Muslim sentiment ‘remains a problem’ with Conservative Party, report finds.”
Although there are 16 candidates standing, the contest is seen as a two horse race between the Labour candidate, Kim Leadbeater, a personal trainer and campaigner, and Ryan Stephenson, chairman of the West Yorkshire Conservatives and a Leeds city councillor.
Leadbeater, 44, is the sister of Jo Cox, the former Labour MP for Batley. Her killer, Thomas Mair, who held far-right views, is serving a life sentence for her murder on Jun 16, 2016.
The by-election was triggered when her replacement, Tracey Brabin, stood down after being elected the Labour mayor of West Yorkshire in May.
A complicating factor has been George Galloway’s attempt to peel away some of the Muslim voters by raising the Palestinian issue. The maverick politician, who has stood for numerous parties in recent years, is standing this time for the “Workers Party”. His intervention will not help the Labour cause.
A spokesman for Labour said the party would “always bring communities together” but made it clear the leaflet would not be withdrawn: “This leaflet makes it clear that a vote for anybody other than Kim (Leadbeater) would lead to a Tory MP who would support a prime minister who insults Muslim women and calls it a joke, refuses to deal with Islamophobia in his party and fails to speak out on human rights abuses in Kashmir.”
The leaflet reminded those with long memories, among them Virendra Sharma, the Labour MP for Ealing Southall, of the events in Smethwick in the West Midlands in the 1964 general election.
Then newly elected Labour prime minister Harold Wilson dismissed the victorious Tory MP, Peter Griffiths, as a “parliamentary leper”, after the latter had endorsed the slogan, “If you want a n****r for a neighbour, vote Labour.”
Eastern Eye asked Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer’s office to defend the leaflet, but received no response.
Sharma, chairman of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on India, was more forthcoming.
He told Eastern Eye: “This divisive leaflet is cheap divide and rule politics not worthy of the Labour Party. We cannot take the low road here and engage in dog-whistle politics, we have to do much better than this.
“Under Keir and Angela’s (Rayner, Labour’s deputy leader) leadership the party has worked hard to rebuild trust with the Indian community. Leaflets such as this will undo all of this good work and engagement and I have asked for it to be withdrawn. The Labour Party has always been the party of working people and working communities; divisive messages like this break those communities – they don’t help them.
"I have always stood on a platform supporting all of my constituents, working for their interests, not just playing politics. The Labour Party will win by bringing people together and uniting the community, to do anything else will divide our community and play into Tory hands.”
He said some in the Labour party took the view that the Indian vote was now more or less lost to the Tories and therefore it should shore up its support among Pakistanis. But Sharma argued this analysis was faulty and pointed out there were plenty of constituencies where Indian voters had remained loyal to the sitting Labour MP.
It is true that many Indians turned away from Labour in 2019 because of then leader Jeremy Corbyn’s perceived pro-Pakistan stance over Kashmir. However, Starmer has angered many of Labour’s traditional Pakistani backers by trying to steer a more neutral line on Kashmir.
The party’s by-election leaflet looks like Labour is alienating Indians once again. The Indian diaspora is probably 2.5 million in size, compared with one million Pakistanis.
In Batley, the ethnic vote could be a significant factor. However, the downside is the leaflet could inflict long-term damage to Labour’s relations, once very close, with Indian voters.
Conservative Friends of India asked Starmer to clarify his message to Indians: “Dear @Keir_Starmer please can you explain this leaflet and clarify whether a Labour PM/Politician would refuse to have any relationship with the world’s largest democracy?”
Tory Party chairman and MP Amanda Milling said: “This is nasty and divisive politics. Once again Labour are playing politics rather than focusing on the issues that matter as the country recovers from the pandemic.”
The leaflet provoked internal warfare as well. Mishra, who became the MP for Stockport in 2019, tweeted: “It saddens me to post this, but racism is alive and well within Labour. A hierarchy of racism exists inside the party and some groups are seen as fair game for attacks based on religion/race/heritage.”
Mishra, who resigned from the shadow government in October, said he had faced racism within the party because of his Indian heritage and Hindu faith.
“The party needs to do a lot better when it comes to relationships with all communities. With regards to leaflets like this, we don’t expect this from Labour.”
The backlash against the leaflet has gone further. Darren Jones, member for Bristol North West and chairman of Labour Friends of India, expressed his deep unease: “It is unfortunate the Labour Party used a picture of the prime minister of India, the world’s largest democracy and one of the UK’s closest friends, from the G7 in 2019. We ask the Labour Party to withdraw
the leaflet immediately and we will also be writing to the leadership about this."
A FORMER West Yorkshire Police officer has been sentenced to two years and three months in prison after being convicted of misconduct in a public office.
Wasim Bashir, 55, who worked as a detective constable in Bradford District, was found guilty of one count of misconduct in a public office for forming a sexual relationship with a female victim of crime. He was sentenced at Sheffield Crown Court on Friday, 29 August.
Bashir retired from the force while under investigation but will still face misconduct proceedings.
The charge related to an incident of abuse of position for a sexual purpose, with Bashir engaging in a sexual relationship with a woman who had reported to West Yorkshire Police that she had been the victim of a sexual offence. He was involved in investigating her case.
The conviction followed an investigation by West Yorkshire Police’s Counter Corruption Unit under the direction of the Independent Office for Police Conduct. During the trial, the judge directed the jury to find Bashir not guilty of a second count of misconduct in a public office.
Detective Superintendent Natalie Dawson, Deputy Head of West Yorkshire Police’s Professional Standards Directorate, said: “For a police officer to pursue a sexual relationship with a vulnerable woman who had come forward to report being victim of a sexual offence is nothing short of abhorrent.
“I want to reassure victims of crime and the wider public that this former officer is not representative of our organisation. One of the Force’s key purposes is to protect vulnerable people, and our officers and staff work tirelessly to protect people from harm and to safeguard victims.
“Former DC Bashir has retired from the organisation, but we will still continue with misconduct proceedings with a view to him being banned from gaining any further employment in the policing profession.”
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Protesters calling for the closure of The Bell Hotel, which was housing asylum seekers, gather outside the council offices in Epping on August 8, 2025. (Photo: Getty Images)
Court of Appeal has overturned injunction blocking use of Epping hotel for asylum seekers.
Judges say human rights obligations outweigh local safety concerns.
At least 13 councils preparing legal action despite ruling.
Protests outside the Bell Hotel lead to arrests and police injuries.
MORE than a dozen councils are moving ahead with legal challenges against the use of hotels for asylum seekers despite the Home Office winning an appeal in the Court of Appeal.
Judges ruled that meeting the human rights of asylum seekers by providing accommodation outweighed local safety concerns.
The injunction was secured by Epping Forest District Council after protests following the alleged sexual assault of a 14-year-old girl by an Ethiopian asylum seeker.
The man has been charged and denies wrongdoing. A full hearing on the planning dispute over the Bell Hotel will take place in October.
At least 13 councils are preparing similar legal action, The Times reported, including Labour-run Wirral, Stevenage, Tamworth and Rushmoor. Epping Forest Council said it may appeal to the Supreme Court.
Asylum minister Dame Angela Eagle said the government remained committed to ending hotel use by 2029 and argued the appeal was needed to move migrants “in a controlled and orderly way”.
Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch criticised the government for prioritising “the rights of illegal immigrants above the rights of British people” and urged councils to continue legal action.
Reform leader Nigel Farage said the government had used the European Convention on Human Rights “against the people of Epping”.
Councils including Broxbourne and Spelthorne confirmed they were pressing ahead with enforcement action on planning grounds.
Protests outside the Bell Hotel on Friday led to the arrest of three men, while two police officers sustained minor injuries.
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India and Canada have appointed new envoys in a step to restore diplomatic ties strained since 2023. (Representational image: iStock)
INDIA and Canada on Thursday announced the appointment of new envoys to each other’s capitals, in a step aimed at restoring strained ties following the killing of a Sikh separatist in 2023.
India has named senior diplomat Dinesh K Patnaik as the next high commissioner to Ottawa, while Canada appointed Christopher Cooter as its new envoy to New Delhi.
The move comes more than two months after Indian prime minister Narendra Modi met Canadian prime minister Mark Carney on the sidelines of the G7 summit at Kananaskis in Canada.
Patnaik, a 1990-batch Indian Foreign Service officer, is currently India’s ambassador to Spain.
“He is expected to take up the assignment shortly,” the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said in a statement.
In Ottawa, Canadian Foreign Minister Anita Anand announced that Cooter will be the next high commissioner to India, succeeding Cameron MacKay.
“The appointment of a new high commissioner reflects Canada’s step-by-step approach to deepening diplomatic engagement and advancing bilateral cooperation with India,” Anand said. “This appointment is an important development toward restoring services for Canadians while strengthening the bilateral relationship to support Canada’s economy.”
A Canadian statement described the appointments as an important step towards restoring diplomatic services for citizens and businesses in both countries.
Cooter, who has 35 years of diplomatic experience, most recently served as Canada’s charge d’affaires to Israel and has earlier been high commissioner to South Africa, Namibia, Lesotho, Mauritius and Madagascar. He also worked as first secretary at the Canadian High Commission in New Delhi from 1998 to 2000.
In June, Modi and Carney had agreed to take “constructive” steps to bring stability to bilateral ties, including the early return of envoys to both capitals.
Relations between the two countries had deteriorated sharply after then prime minister Justin Trudeau alleged in 2023 that India may have had a role in the killing of Khalistani separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar.
Following this, India recalled its high commissioner and five other diplomats in October last year, while expelling an equal number of Canadian diplomats after Ottawa linked them to the case.
Carney’s victory in the parliamentary election in April has since helped initiate a reset in relations.
(With inputs from agencies)
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Security officers escort Sri Lankan former fisheries minister, Rajitha Senaratne (C), outside a court in Colombo on August 29, 2025. (Photo by ISHARA S. KODIKARA/AFP via Getty Images)
SRI LANKAN former government minister surrendered himself to a court on Friday (29) after two months on the run, the latest high profile detention in a sweeping anti-corruption crackdown.
Anti-graft units have ramped up their investigations since president Anura Kumara Dissanayake came to power in September on a promise to fight corruption.
Former fisheries minister Rajitha Senaratne, who served in the cabinet of then-president Mahinda Rajapaksa, is accused of illegally awarding a 2012 contract to a foreign firm, allegedly causing a loss to the state of $83,000 (£61,478).
Senaratne had repeatedly dodged questioning, the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption said.
High Court judge Lanka Jayaratne ordered him transferred to a lower court to face multiple cases.
Several politicians from the Rajapaksa administration, as well as family members, are either in jail or on bail pending corruption investigations.
Former president Ranil Wickremesinghe was arrested last week on a charge of misusing $55,000 (£40,738) of government funds for a private stopover in Britain.
Wickremesinghe, 76, who was granted bail on Tuesday (26), insisted the stopover was part of his official duties.
Under Dissanayake, two former senior ministers have been jailed for up to 25 years for corruption.
The police chief has been impeached, after he was accused of running a criminal network that supported politicians, and the prisons chief was jailed for corruption.
The head of immigration -- arrested just before Dissanayake took power -- remains in detention on a charge of contempt of court.
(AFP)
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Protesters from the group Save Our Future & Our Kids Future demonstrate against uncontrolled immigration outside the Cladhan Hotel on August 16, 2025 in Falkirk, Scotland. (Photo: Getty Images)
UK appeals court overturns ruling blocking hotel use for asylum seekers
Judges call earlier High Court decision “seriously flawed”
138 asylum seekers will not need to be relocated by September 12
Full hearing scheduled at the Court of Appeal in October
A UK appeals court has overturned a lower court order that had temporarily blocked the use of a hotel in Epping, northeast of London, to house asylum seekers.
A three-judge panel said the High Court ruling that set a September 12 deadline to move migrants from the Bell Hotel contained "a number of errors".
The case followed protests outside the hotel after a resident was charged with sexually assaulting a local girl. Demonstrations have continued for weeks and at times turned violent, triggering debate on immigration policy.
The Court of Appeal said the earlier ruling was "seriously flawed in principle" and could act as an "impetus or incentive for further protests". It added that it failed to consider the "obvious consequence that the closure of one site means capacity needs to be identified elsewhere in the system".
The government will now not be required to relocate 138 asylum seekers from the hotel by September 12. The decision also weakens local efforts to challenge the use of other hotels to house asylum seekers.
The Home Office is legally required under a 1999 law to house "all destitute asylum seekers whilst their asylum claims are being decided".
The case will return for a full hearing at the Court of Appeal in October. Both the Home Office and the hotel’s owner, Somani Hotels, are opposing Epping Forest District Council’s bid to prevent the hotel being used for asylum accommodation.
The council argued that the hotel posed a public safety risk and that its use breached planning rules.
The hotel became the focus of national attention after resident Hadush Kebatu was accused of sexually assaulting a 14-year-old girl. He has denied the charges, which include sexual assault, attempted sexual assault, and harassment without violence. His trial began this week.
Protests in Epping have since spread to other parts of Britain, as small boat arrivals across the Channel continue.