The community party they stood for was set up by an NF veteran with a prison record for ABH (Bricking a policeman from a moving train).

So that’s their stepping stone to the Tories. And AFAIK they don’t even have a vote in ES.

Just a shame Sonika Nirwal didnt get the nomination. I hope she finds a constituency soon.

1) Do they think it would be good to see a turbaned Sikh in Parliament and how best could this be achieved?

Yes it would be nice. The best way to achieve it? By a keshdari Sikh gaining a seat in a viable and electable constituency through his commitment to mainstream politics and party. Not by chauvinistic ‘positive dicrimination’ in a constituency like Ealing Southall, in which Sikhs represent only 23% of the population, and turbanned orthodox Sikhs even less than that.

5) What are your views on the Sikh organisations proscribed/banned in the UK in March 2001 and the absence of terrorist Hindu organisations?

Just because there are Hindu extremist organisations which have not been proscribed by the British government has no relevancy to the existence of proscribed Khalistani terrorist bodies which are banned by the European Union, the USA and Canada. They must stay banned, subject to intelligence and scrutiny, and all those individuals and organisations who support them and campaign for their de-proscription should be monitored and highlighted.

So at question Time, Khalistani activists should be asked why they seek to introduce poisonous strains of religious nationalism and hatred in the most multi-ethnic and multi-religious constituency in the whole of Great Britain. They should also be asked why they treat this as a Khalistani fiefdom when in reality over 75% of the constituency is not Sikh, and religious nationalist politics and chauvinism, their rhetoric, troublemaking and fundamentalism are reviled and despised by the majority of Sikhs in Britain. They should be asked politely why they continue to spit into the well of multicultural Britain.

These are the questions you need to be asked.

Has the media revolution really broken down the barriers of debate to the extent that all of humankind can theoretically talk on the same page, or that these important (and motivating) issues of the day (ie climate change, terrorism etc) are becoming so dramatic and urgent that they must be lifted out of the public domain?

If so, does this explain the current socially engineered stratification of society and its necessary corollary – exposure of the flaws inherent in democracy?
If not, have the established institutions of goverment fallen into the trap of muddled thinking and lack of foresight?

How can we have confidence that government has a handle on forces behind change and that it is acting in our best interests?

Does the parochialism of by-elections swamp out awareness of the bigger forces at work in the world?

What platform is actually provided for debate and discussion to enliven, engage and educate the wider public?

I predict the answer will be provided by the proportional turnout figures, but the result will also be interpreted by the Westminster chatterers as a reflection upon their relative merits rather than as evidence to critique prevailing political cultures.

4) Is it appropriate for elected MPs in the UK Parliament to maintain ties with foreign political parties, for example, Congress or RSS, in India?

Now that question really does open up a can of worms…

1) Do they think it would be good to see a turbaned Sikh in Parliament and how best could this be achieved?

2) If elected will you highlight human rights violations of minorities (e.g. Sikhs) in India?

3) Should there be an upper age limit for MPs and what should this be?

4) Is it appropriate for elected MPs in the UK Parliament to maintain ties with foreign political parties, for example, Congress or RSS, in India?

5) What are your views on the Sikh organisations proscribed/banned in the UK in March 2001 and the absence of terrorist Hindu organisations?

6) Do you support the right to self determination?

7) Should human rights violators from countries like India be prosecuted if they enter the UK under the Criminal Justice Act?

Question Time for candidates

CANDIDATES in the Ealing Southall by-election will be challenged in a question time event next week.

They will be grilled to find out where they stand on a range of issues such as job cuts, privitisation and civil service pay.

The event which is organised by the Public and Commercial Services Union (PCS), is part of their Make Your Vote Count campaign.

It will be at Ealing Town Hall on Monday, July 16, at 6.30pm and everyone is welcome to attend.

2:07pm today

A DATE FOR YOUR DIARIES

Both Gill and Kad joined the ‘Hounslow Independent Alliance’ after being expelled from the Labour Party after the investigation into the notorious Heston and Cranford Planning Committee record of dodgy decisions.

A report that can be seen on the Local Government Ombudsman site says ” The area committee decided not to take (enforcement) action. In doing so, they took into account irrelevant matters and factually inaccurate information. They gave little weight to the Council’s policies and planning guidance. Some members of the committee had received no training in planning issues. One of the reasons given for their decision was factually inaccurate.

A review of the Council’s records revealed that in recent years this area committee had refused a higher proportion of officers’ recommendations to take planning enforcement action than the Council’s other area planning committees, and that concerns about this committee’s planning decision making had been raised in a report to the Council’s Executive Committee by its Scrutiny Committee in 2003.”

Clearly Cameron will take anyone these days.

I’d urge people in the Gurudwaras to vote how they see fit, not how the committee recommends (if the two coincide then fair enough of course).

Religion and race politics is ugly and unedifying.

In many ways this election is a win-win for Labour.

I see your logic, Sunny, and I’m sure you’re right for Labour in Ealing Southall.

But surely the wider national picture means that this simply isn’t true for Labour as a whole. Its Brown’s first by-election (the one in Sedgefield really doesn’t count) and even going from and 11,400 majority to “a close by-election” is good news for the Tories. That’s what matters to the national media. And it is also what matters to the Tory bloggers who will very soon be commenting on more of your “spin”…

It means I get to buy the Picklers a round of drinks at our next meetup.

*raises eyebrow, starts looking in diary for next available date for a meet up*

Rumbold – ahem… the Tories wanted to advertise with us for their candidate so I ran the ad. It means I get to buy the Picklers a round of drinks at our next meetup.