As many as 4 million Muslims and 1 million Hindus seek to assert their political weight and importance as the United Kingdom goes to national elections Thursday July 04, 2024.
The United Kingdom that comprises of England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland is divided into 650 constituencies.
The key parties contesting the 2024 UK elections are Labour party, the Conservative party, Liberal Democrats, Scottish National party, Green party, Reform UK, Sinn Féin and the Democratic Unionist party besides some candidates who are contesting as independents.
The latest survey has predicted the end of 14-year rule of Rishi Sunak led Conservative Party. The survey predicted Keir Starmer led Labour party is set to sweep the UK General Elections.
Total Registered Voters in UK
The population of UK as per the 2024 data is 67,961,439. Of them a little less than 4 million are Muslims. This comes to about 6.5% of the total UK population.
British Muslims are of all ethnicities and originating from different countries including Britain, though a good majority of them are Pakistani and Indian origin.
On the other hand, Hindus in UK, who are around 1 million, almost all are Indian origin.
There are around 49 million registered voters in UK who will cast their vote Thursday to elect the Members of Parliament (MPs), according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS).
The Muslim Vote Campaign
Some Muslim NGOs are running what is billed as “The Muslim Vote” campaign to mobilise voters. The campaign is not only asking Muslims to vote in large numbers but also seek to assert their political importance.
“This election signals a shift – Muslim issues at the forefront. We will no longer tolerate being taken for granted. We are a powerful, united force of 4 million acting in unison”, the campaign says on its website.
The key issues of focus for Muslim voters in the United Kingdom are human rights abuses and genocides, mainly of the Palestinians at the hands of the Israeli Occupation Forces.
The Muslim Vote has released a list of constituencies where population of Muslims is more than 10% and the names of the candidates the campaign wants Muslims to vote for.
Most of the candidates in the list are Labour party candidates though some belong to Conservative and some who are running as Independents.
“In constituencies where there are multiple candidates, we encourage the community to unite behind the single Muslim Vote candidate who best represents our values and interests, maximising our impact and ensuring our voice is strong and cohesive”, the campaign says.
Hindus oppose Hate Crimes in UK, support in India
The Hindus living in Britain on the other hand are also trying to assert their presence in the UK politics and have for the first time released ‘The Hindu Manifesto UK 2024’.
The manifesto lists a number of demands key among them is the demand to recognise “anti-Hindu hate as a religious hate crime.”
Interestingly, a good majority of the UK Hindus are supporters of the BJP and the right wing Hindutva groups accused of hate mongering and hate crimes against minorities and Dalits in India.
Among other demands in the manifesto is also protection of places of worship for Hindus. Again, a good majority of them celebrated the demolition of Babri Masjid and rejoice places of worship of Muslims and Christians are attacked in India.
The United Kingdom is going to polls for the first time since 2022 when communal clashes erupted between Hindus and Muslims in Leicester after India Pakistan Asia World Cup 2022 match played in the UAE.
2024 UK Election Result Date
The polling for the UK elections will take place Thursday July 04, 2024. The polling stations formed on public places will be open from 7:00 am to 10:00 pm.
Registered voters are required to cast their votes using ballot papers – unlike India where Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) are used.
Counting of votes will begin soon after the polling ends at 10:00 pm Thursday with the first result expected at about 11:30 pm. Results of all 650 seats will be out by 08:00 am Friday, according to The Guardian.
Unlike in India where it is alleged that the Exit Polls are manipulated, in UK exit poll results are considered authentic.
The first indication of the results is the well-respected exit poll, developed by the statisticians Prof John Curtice and David Firth.
The results of the poll, which are shared with BBC, ITV, Sky and some other broadcasters and published at 10:00 pm on election night, are considered to have a good record of accuracy and are based on the votes cast in a mock ballot by people in about 130 polling stations, according to The Guardian.
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