50 temples closed in Indian PM’s country, Indian priests are being discriminated against! Can’t get visa
There is a government of Indian-origin Prime Minister Rishi Sunak in Britain, but 50 out of 500 temples there have reportedly been closed, while some other religious places are also in a closed condition. It is also alleged that Indian priests are being discriminated against there and they are not being given visas. This is the reason why there is a possibility of increasing resentment towards the Sunak government among a section of Hindus living in Britain.
It was said that due to shortage of priests, worship services have almost stopped and other arrangements are also coming to a standstill. The problems brewing there can be gauged from the fact that the Biometric Residence Permit (BRP) of the priest of Ram Mandir in Birmingham had the wrong date of visa expiry. He also had to pay a fee of Rs 6 lakh for this, yet it was not rectified. In such a situation, the priest had to return from Britain prematurely.
20 lakh Hindus live in Britain
There are about 20 lakh Hindus living in Britain who require priests for their religious rituals and worship. Like India, in Britain too, along with the religious rituals of worship in temples, priests also perform house warming and marriage ceremonies for Indians.
‘Had hope from Sunak government to speed up the visa process’
According to media reports, Sunil Sharma, priest of Lakshminarayan Temple in Birmingham, Britain, expressed his displeasure and said, “It was expected from the Sunak government that the process of issuing visas would be expedited. Being a Hindu, Rishi Sunak will understand our problems but his The government has so far failed to do so.”
Issue raised several times with government, no benefit
Similarly, United Temple Group, an organization of temples in Britain, said that this issue was raised with British Foreign Minister James Cleverley. Senior Labor Party MP Gareth Thomas has also written a letter to the Home Minister demanding to speed up the process of “Tier 5 Religious Worker Visa”. However, there was not much benefit. Through this special visa process, priests of different religions are given exemption to come to Britain.
