Hindu-Muslim community leaders call for stop to cycle of violence in UK’s Leicester

Community leaders from Leicester’s Hindu and Muslim communities released a joint statement today calling for a stop to the cycle of violence that began last month with clashes over an Asia Cup cricket match between India and Pakistan.
“We, the family of Leicester, stand in front of you not only as Hindus and Muslims but as brothers and sisters. There is no place for any foreign extremist ideology that causes division,” one of them said in a video.
Also Read Hindu-Muslim violence: UK police make 47 arrests to deter further disorder in Leicester “Our two faiths have lived harmoniously in this wonderful city for over half a century. We arrived in this city together. We faced the same challenges together. We fought off racist haters together, and collectively made this city a beacon of diversity and community cohesion,” he further read from the statement.  “We are from one family. We settled here in this city together, we fought the racists together, we built it up together. The recent violence is not who we are as a city.” Joint statement on Hindu / Muslim tensions in Leicester pic.twitter.com/PPZLkusMeX — Darshna Soni (@darshnasoni) September 20, 2022 He went on to say that the communities are “saddened and devastated” by the “tension and violence” that “do not belong in a moral society.” “What we have seen is not what we’re about,” he said.
“We ask all to respect the sanctity of religious places, both mosques and temples alike,” he added requesting people not to succumb to the “provocation with loud music, flag-bearing, derogatory chants or physical attacks against the fabric of worship.”