British Indians: The New Jews

Imagine a national newspaper publishing a cartoon of Ilhan Omar as a grotesque pig, with trotters for hands and a ringed snout where her nose should be.

The sky would fall in. Advertisers would boycott the publication in their droves and CAIR (the Council on American-Islamic relations) would claim the scalp (possibly literally) of the editor responsible.

Not so when the target is a British Indian with a Hindu faith. The Guardian (like the New York Times but more left-wing, if such a thing is possible) felt emboldened enough to print an equivalent horror aimed at Priti Patel, our British Indian Home Secretary, depicting her as a menacing cow with a ring through her nose, and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson as a bull sitting next to her. Both have cloven hooves for good measure.

Priti Patel has the decency not to shove her religion in anyone’s face, but she is a Hindu whose parents came from India. And for those of us less informed about the Hindu religion, there are some important facts to establish.

In Hinduism the cow is a sacred animal. And Nandi, the gatekeeper of Shiva (one of their holiest gods), is depicted as a bull. These creatures have special significance and deep religious meaning.

In the traffic-choked streets of India, cows amble about at will, safe in their serenity, and are worshipped and decorated during festivals. Most states in India forbid cow slaughter and rumors of cows being eaten by non-Hindu families has led to thrashings and even lynchings, such is the religious significance of the beast.

The President of the Hindu Forum of Britain accused the newspaper of “crossing the boundary from legitimate reporting to blatant racism”:

“The cartoon has caused huge offense in the Hindu community and beyond… Calling any woman a cow is clearly misogynistic and offensive: this cartoon should never have been printed for that reason alone… Since the cow is sacred to the Hindu religion to use such an image in this context represents the extreme of racism. We believe this should be investigated by the police.”

Others took to Twitter to articulate much the same. Former Home Secretary Sajid Javid was not the only one to say it reminded him of anti-Semitic cartoons of the last century. This was the gut reaction of many of us.

Sadly, however, it’s no surprise that the mob has come for Priti Patel who is arguably the most powerful female politician in the UK today. She has earned the respect of Brexit supporters who yearn for the country we used to recognize; she was a loyal champion of Brexit at a time when the full force of the Establishment and the leftist elite sought to overturn the will of the people.

She is tough on law and order, increasing the powers of police to reduce the knife-crime epidemic in the country, calling for tougher sentences for criminals and enforcing the deportation of convicted foreigners.

She is strong on immigration, launching the new British points-based immigration system to limit the numbers of low-skilled individuals flooding into the country.

She has ordered officials to explain what has happened to the long-awaited government review on majority-Pakistani Muslim grooming gangs targeting our young white girls.

Her resilience, delivered with a knowing grin, has incensed her detractors all the more.

An orchestrated takedown of Priti Patel has consumed the British media for a few weeks. Bullying claims emerged, and the Home Office’s most senior Civil Servant resigned dramatically and publicly, describing himself as the target of a vicious and orchestrated campaign against him, claiming Ms Patel has been “shouting and swearing at staff, belittling people and making unreasonable and repeated demands.”

Such drama is unheard of in the British Civil service, which is usually as starched and tightly buttoned as an extra on Downton Abbey.

Boris Johnson rallied to her defense – The Home Secretary is doing an outstanding job. I have every confidence in her.” – launching return fire at those trying to overthrow her from her post. His loyalty to her resulted in the vile cartoon shown above.

But this fight is about much more than one woman. There are big, strategic forces at play.

Priti Patel represents an empowered and emboldened India. The rise and rise of the Indian Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, his blossoming relationship with Trump, his fight back against Islamists in Jammu and Kashmir, and the new Citizen Amendment Act (offering refuge to persecuted Christians and other minorities) has enraged the Pakistani Muslim mob.

This is India versus Pakistan, Modi versus Imran Khan, Western (and Western-style) democracy versus Islam and Sharia. The British left (majority Muslim) versus the British right (increasingly home to the Indian diaspora). The recent appointment of Rishi Sunak as Chancellor, which adds a devastatingly effective (and handsome) Indian to the Cabinet, has only added to the Muslim and leftist chagrin.

I have visited the Indian Embassy and the leadership of the Indian Diaspora in London and Birmingham, and for them the intent of this vulgar cartoon and the reasons behind the coordinated lynching of Priti Patel are perfectly clear.

As the demographics of the UK shift towards a majority Muslim population, the left knows where its future power lies. By 2040 we are outnumbered. When the left insults Jews or Hindus – and gets away with it – it excites their Muslim base. National socialists have plied this trade before.

Our peaceful Indian community is in the crosshairs of powerful Muslim forces readying themselves for majority rule in the United Kingdom.

Are British Indians the new Jews, their women, their religion, their beliefs now acceptable targets, to be mocked, humiliated, ridiculed? Leftists openly portray them as a lesser race, to be talked about in derogatory tones. For some reason, political correctness and thought-policing only applies to anti-Muslim rhetoric. What sick hypocrisy is this?

In Israel not so long ago, a journalist told me that Jews in Europe should treat every day like 1 September 1939. I fear this is increasingly true for our Indian diaspora too. They are British citizens now and they have no Israel. Where will they run when they need a new place to call home? And what will become of those of us left behind in an unrecognizable Britain?