Khan and Malhotra support Dhesi at campaign launch

TAN DHESI stressed his support for Slough’s communities and his calls for a ceasefire in Gaza as he launched his campaign to be re-elected MP.

His launch last Saturday (8) came just days after seven Slough councillors quit the Labour Party, criticising both him and the party.

At the event, Dhesi said Labour was in favour of a ceasefire and strongly backed a Palestinian state. He told the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS): “The Labour party is the party of human rights which since last year has been calling for a ceasefire, calling for an end to the violence in Gaza.

“In fact, the only motion that has passed in the UK parliament is the Labour motion in February 2024 which called for an immediate ceasefire.”

London mayor Sadiq Khan, former shadow chancellor John McDonnell, and shadow education minister Seema Malhotra also spoke at the event.

Their presence on a Saturday afternoon – an important day of campaigning – suggested that Labour considers Slough a “battleground area” despite Dhesi’s large majority.

Dhesi faced criticism when he abstained on a vote in parliament calling for a ceasefire in November last year.

But Malhotra said she and Dhesi had “worked together on the cause of a ceasefire in Gaza.” She said they both had been meeting with charity Medical Aid for Palestine on the day the election was called.

McDonnell said he had encouraged Dhesi to first stand as MP in 2017. Khan said people of Hindu, Christian, and Muslim backgrounds had come to the event to support Dhesi, a Sikh. He appealed to supporters “not to be deflected by those who try to divide our communities.”

His comments echoed Dhesi’s criticism of independent candidate Azhar Chohan, who he accused last month of trying to encourage Muslims to “vote in a block” against him.

Chohan has made support for Palestine a large part of his campaign – and has denied that his campaign is dividing Slough’s communities. (Local Democracy Reporting Service)