Around 50 members of the British Hindu community on Wednesday (28) gathered outside the office of The Guardian newspaper in London to protest over its allegedly misleading and biased reporting against the community and India.
The protesters accused the newspaper of showing the Hindu community in poor light and also served it a memorandum which was addressed to the editor-in-chief, Katharine Viner. They also sought a response to it.
On Tuesday (27), a press release was issued that said, “As a result of Hindu hate-filled articles in The Guardian, a vigil will take place outside their premises” at Kings Place, London.
On Wednesday, the protesters were seen holding banners that read ‘Hindu Lives Matter’, ‘Stop putting lives at risk’, ‘Stop spreading fake news’, ‘Stop demonising Hindus’, ‘Hindu is peace’, etc. outside the media house’s office.
"India which is host to tens of thousands of persecuted groups does not need to be given homilies on being tolerant. The Zoroastrians, Bahai's, Tibetan Buddhists and Jewish people have lived in India happily for centuries. There are millions of Christians living happily except for some evangelical missionaries trying to convert Hindus by abusing Hindus traditions and culture. Sometimes minorities can be unreasonable and confrontational. A majority is not always wrong because it is a majority and a minority is not always right because it is a minority," one press release issued by a protesting group said.
They also accused The Guardian of creating hate for the Hindu community in the UK. They urged the newspaper to tone down its "extreme Hindu position" and warned that they would hold more protests if it did not. They called The Guardian's brand of journalism "unprofessional" and said they were ready to meet its editorial board to discuss the issue.
Damian Talbot