Concerns that foreigners have caused trouble in the city have been raised as it was discovered that eight of those arrested were not from Leicestershire. Of these, five were from Birmingham, while one from Solihull, one from Luton and one gave an address in Hounslow. Reacting to the news, Sir Peter Soulsby, the city’s mayor, said it appeared to be the first evidence that people were traveling to Leicester to take part in the clashes. “It suggests there are people with other battles coming to Leicester to fight them. It is sad that they choose to do this in our city. We pride ourselves on good relations between communities,” he told the Guardian. He added: “I’ve spoken to a lot of people in all the communities since this problem started, and they’re completely baffled by it. It doesn’t represent anything simmering in Leicester and seems to have more to do with subcontinental politics.” Last weekend saw a tense standoff between Muslim and Hindu groups and the police on Saturday night. A demonstration was held on Sunday in response to an unscheduled protest by Hindu men on Saturday, who marched through the city. The heated atmosphere was exacerbated by videos released online over the weekend showing a man taking down a flag outside a Hindu temple in Leicester’s Melton Road, and another video of a flag burning. The Indian High Commission released a statement on Twitter strongly condemning “the violence perpetrated against the Indian community in Leicester and the vandalism of Hindu religious sites and symbols”. He added: “We have vigorously discussed this matter with the UK authorities and have called for immediate action against those involved in these attacks.” Earlier on Monday, Soulsby told BBC Radio 4’s Today program that social media had exacerbated tensions and there was “no obvious local cause” for such clashes in “an otherwise very peaceful city”. “I’ve seen a wide variety of social media that is very distorting now and some of it is just outright lying about what had happened between different communities,” he said. Dharmesh Lakhani, who represents and works with Hindu temples across Leicester, confirmed that one flag outside the Shivalaya temple in Belgrave Road was removed while the other was burnt, describing it as “unacceptable”. Of the incident, Lakhani said: “I am really proud to say that day, when the flag was removed, there was an Imam outside. He said I am standing outside the mandir [temple]making sure nothing happens.” Lakhani, who has also worked with mosques and local Muslim leaders in the region, urged calm and dialogue on both sides, in a city he said had long been a haven for Hindu and Muslim communities – living side by side for decades. Several arrests have been made in recent weeks and a large number of people have been searched under Article 60 stop and search powers, police said. On Saturday, a group of Hindu men were filmed marching through Green Lane Road, where there are many Muslim businesses and a Hindu temple nearby. Archie Bland and Nimo Omer take you to the top stories and what they mean, free every weekday morning Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain information about charities, online advertising and content sponsored by external parties. For more information, see our Privacy Policy. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and Google’s Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. Several eyewitnesses – corroborated by videos circulating on social media – said they saw hundreds of men wearing masks and balaclavas chanting “Jai Shri Ram”, which translates from Hindi as “hail Lord Ram” or “victory to the Lord Ram,” a chant that has become synonymous with anti-Muslim violence in India. Yasmin Surti, who has worked with the Leicester community for 30 years, said questions needed to be asked about why police allowed the group to cross the city, as it made many local Muslims feel unsafe. Removing the flag from the temple on Belgrave Street was “unhelpful”, Surti added, in an already tense situation. “Hindus and Muslims in Leicester have been living together peacefully for many years,” he added. Police were quick to claim that the violence that occurred after a cricket match between India and Pakistan in August was not initially on religious lines, contrary to some social media posts. “An incident was shared on social media stating that a Muslim man was attacked by Hindus. This was wrong – the victim was actually a Sikh and supported the same group as the people who attacked him,” a police spokesman said. Gurharpal Singh, emeritus professor of Sikh and Punjabi studies at Soas University of London and visiting fellow at the University of Leicester, said Leicester was a model of multiculturalism, but there was a deep divide. “These heightened tensions are now I think part of a larger social change happening within the city,” Singh said. “Also, perhaps one shouldn’t rule out the growing influence of homeland politics, you know, the mobilization of the diaspora by the BJP [Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata party].”
