A “VIGIL for democracy in India” brought diaspora organisations together in London’s Parliament Square today.

Campaigners from 15 groups condemned hate speech against Muslims by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his government’s decade-long “subversion of the Indian constitution.”

Referring to India’s ongoing general election, South Asia Solidarity Group spokesman Mukti Shah said “This election campaign is marked by an increasingly desperate campaign [by the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party], with Modi’s election speeches filled with explicit Islamophobic hatred, lies and incitement to genocide.

“It’s a campaign which is made possible by massive funding by transnational corporations like Adani, whose drones manufactured with Elbit are used against Palestinians in Gaza and Adivasis in central India.

“In the last decade, India has slipped down the Global Hunger Index and now has the highest rate of childhood stunting in the world.

“Protesting farmers, unemployed youth demanding jobs and women speaking out on sexual violence have all faced violent repression.

“Indian Muslims’ homes are bulldozed and their citizenship denied under new laws.

“This vigil sends a powerful message that the Indian diaspora rejects fascism and is willing to speak out for justice and democracy.”