The Hindu Council UK (HCUK) has demanded a national public inquiry into sexual-grooming gangs across the United Kingdom, condemning the “heinous crimes” committed against children and young girls.
The organisation has called on the UK government to fulfil its responsibility of safeguarding vulnerable individuals and ensuring justice for the victims of these atrocities.
The HCUK emphasised the urgency of addressing the issue, citing a 2011 report by The Times that exposed the widespread grooming of girls in several UK towns. Three years later, the first inquiry revealed that approximately 1,400 children had fallen victim to predators in one English town alone.
According to the HCUK, the UK criminal justice system has repeatedly failed to protect victims from predatory men, necessitating a full investigation into these scandals. “It is the prime responsibility of the Government to safeguard and protect children and young people against these heinous crimes,” the HCUK stated.
Krishna Bhan, Chair of the Hindu Council UK, urged the government to adopt a consistent approach to tracking these crimes and investigating the sexual grooming of young girls across the nation. “The scandal of these grooming gangs should be fully investigated, and the Home Office adopt a consistent way of tracking the disgusting and vile practice,” she said.
The HCUK also criticised the lasting impact of these crimes on children, their families, and their communities. “We request the Government to fully investigate the sexual grooming of girls across the UK by holding a national public inquiry, so that efforts can be made to bring justice to the victims, if it can ever be fully done considering the lasting effects of this trauma,” Bhan added.
The organisation also expressed dissatisfaction with the use of the term “Asian” to describe these grooming gangs, highlighting the harm this generalisation causes to other communities. “Hindu and Sikh girls were also their victims,” the HCUK said, welcoming a recent decision by the BBC to refrain from using the term in news reports. However, the group criticised Prime Minister Keir Starmer for continuing to use the term during a press conference, describing it as “whitewashing” the issue.
The broader controversy has reignited debate over Starmer’s tenure as the UK’s Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) from 2008 to 2013. Critics, including tech billionaire Elon Musk, have accused Starmer of failing to address the issue during his time as DPP. Musk recently stated, “The real reason is that it would show how Starmer repeatedly ignored the pleas of vast numbers of little girls and their parents, in order to secure political support. Starmer is utterly despicable.”
Starmer, however, has staunchly defended his record, claiming to have changed the system to ensure victims’ voices were heard and citing record prosecutions of child sexual abuse cases during his tenure.
The Rotherham scandal, which took place between 1997 and 2013, remains one of the most notorious cases of child exploitation in the UK. Seven men were recently convicted in September 2024 for crimes committed against two girls in the 2000s. The convictions were part of Operation Stovewood, a major investigation led by the National Crime Agency into child sexual exploitation in South Yorkshire. The victims in this case were aged 11 and 15 when the abuse began.
Hardeep Singh, Deputy director Network of Sikh Organisations, weighed in on the matter in an editorial in The Spectator, calling for greater accountability from political leaders. “There’s still time for self-proclaimed feminist and ‘strong woman’ Phillips to do the right thing,” Singh remarked, calling the attention of Labour MP and safeguarding minister Jess Phillips.
As the debate intensifies, the Hindu Council UK is mobilising its resources to advocate for justice for the victims. The organisation views a national public inquiry as a critical step in addressing the systemic failures and ensuring the safety of future generations.
(with inputs from ANI)
