:: EDITORIAL & ANALYSIS ::

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We often hear about the success, economic and otherwise of the Hindu community in the United Kingdom. Statistics have shown Hindus to be at the head of the pack in academic achievements and employment scales. Also we read about Hindus being successful in the business world, working for the top corporations in the capital city and abroad, and enterprising into the realms of law, accounts, building trade, support staff and others. Almost 50% of the younger Hindus are believed to have academically excelled and progressed upwards and onwards in terms of affluence.

But what about the other half? Not every Hindu has a degree or equivalent academic attainments. Many work in the service sectors and the blue-collar world, and others have sunk into the salubrious so called underclass.

Are they the forgotten Hindus of the United Kingdom? As writer after writer and self appointed 'heads' of the Hindu community wax eloquent about the financial successes and achievements of the community are we ignoring a significant section of our people?

Statistics reveal a steady increase in the prison population of young Hindus for violence as well as financial irregularities. They are pitifully served in their religious needs and some succumb to the allurements of the prison priests and anti establishment Islamic radicals.

Many others struggle away in their jobs and day-to-day lives with little recognition from the Hindu community. The community almost 1 million strong has shown a traditional respect for education, an education that allows for economic success but on the other hand has little to do with religious or ethical values. Nevertheless the people running the majority of Hindu religious institutions in the UK consciously or subconsciously judge character and moral calibre on the basis of affluence and education. A silent apartheid is developing towards the Hindus who have not excelled in these realms. Their lack of educational and financial standing has left them behind in the religious realm, despite being generally as firm and practising as any other section of Hindus. They are sidelined by an ageing and prejudiced leaders of the community.

There is a steady stream of immigrants from many parts of the world swelling the numbers of Hindus in the United Kingdom. Some are well-educated and tech savvy. Many others slip into the world of manual labour, toiling in farms and factories and shops around the country. More often than not their lack of proficiency in the English language and the natural suspicion of immigrants leave them isolated from the mainstream population.

Our studies have revealed a feeling of neglect and contempt from the longer established Hindus, almost apartheid by Hindus who have been in the UK for thirty years against Hindus arrived in the past ten years! A cutting division between Gujaratis and Punjabis and Tamils and others. A subtle racism based on proficiency in the English language and subscription to western values and cultural mores.

How will the 'other half' progress? Will they continue to be the ignored and neglected half of the Hindus in the UK or will they find a way to establish their importance and value amongst the Hindus in the UK, in a manner that is not solely represented by economic and financial success?

We have found some young Hindus breaking through these barriers in an attempt to create a value based and balanced projection of Hindu Dharma in the UK. Their efforts and successes will determine whether a more egalitarian form of Hinduism will crystallise in this country and progress into the 21st century as a vital and living force.

The progress and direction of the Hindus in the United Kingdom will depend on the answers found to the above questions.