Labour candidate shocked by ‘divisive’ Tory letter

A Labour election candidate has told the BBC she was “disappointed and shocked” by a “divisive” letter sent to British Pakistani voters by her Conservative opponent.

In a letter addressed to “the British Pakistani/Kashmiri community of Dudley”, Marco Longhi asked: “Will it be me or the Labour Party parliamentary candidate Sonia KUMAR?”, highlighting the name of his rival.

Critics said the move was aimed at highlighting Ms Kumar’s Indian-British background in the hope of persuading British Pakistani Muslims not to vote for her. Kumar is a traditional Indian name, used mainly by members of the Hindu community but also by some Sikhs.

Mr Longhi, who is standing for the Dudley MP seat, said he was “not trying to stir up division”.

But Sonia Kumar, who is Sikh, said it was “unacceptable” to “suggest that she would not stand up for all her constituents because of her religion and heritage”.

“I work in our NHS as a physiotherapist, helping everyone in Dudley, whatever their background,” she said.

Labour Party leader Anneliese Dodds called the letter “clearly inappropriate, divisive and a dog whistle”.

“There is no place for this behaviour in our political system. Rishi Sunak must act immediately. Failure to do so will show that his promise of professionalism and accountability is a hollow sham,” she said.

Lord Austin, an independent member of parliament and Labour MP for Dudley North from 2005 to 2019, said he had worked hard to tackle racism and sectarian politics and to bring local people together.

“The people of Dudley are much better than this and I hope they will reject this candidate and his despicable divisive policies.”

Rajesh Agrawal, Labour candidate for Leicester East, said the letter was a “shameful” attempt to divide the region and was “offensive” to Muslim and Hindu communities.

In the letter, Mr Longhi, who previously represented Dudley North, said he had been “one of the first to speak out against the Indian government’s atrocities against the people of Kashmir” and that the re-election of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi would mean “even more difficult times for the people of Kashmir”.

He wrote: “If you vote for me, I promise you that I will raise my voice even more for Kashmir in Parliament and will be at the forefront of defending Kashmiris in Parliament.”

The Himalayan region of Kashmir has been a point of contention between India and Pakistan for more than eight decades. Both countries claim the entire Muslim-majority territory but control parts of it.

The Indian military has been fighting a separatist insurgency in the region for more than three decades, which has left thousands dead. India accuses Pakistan of instigating violence in the region, a charge its neighbor denies.

Kashmiri residents have long accused security forces of excesses, including beatings and torture, which Indian authorities consistently deny.

Mr Longhi told the BBC that many people in the community had told him they were “very concerned about what is happening in Kashmir”.

Asked whether he had created division by highlighting Ms Kumar’s last name, Mr Longhi said: “I don’t know what her ethnicity or religious background is. I’m not trying to stir up division.”

“I will always defend human rights violations wherever they occur,” he added.

The letter was published on X by Sunder Katwala, director of the British think tank Future, which focuses on integration, migration, identity and race.

Sharing the letter, he said that in the past, different parties had made proposals to voters of a particular ethnicity or religion, but “this should not happen”.

“In my opinion, any of the major parties should suspend a candidate for doing this. Sectarian communal speeches are wrong,” he wrote.

“This particular example is further compounded by this conscious use of bias against a rival party’s candidate.”

The Conservative Party has been contacted for comment.

You can find a full list of candidates for the Dudley constituency here.