A scheme has been launched to improve the political representation of Hindus in Britain, by giving ten young Hindus the chance to shadow a leading Parliamentarian, over a period of six months.

The programme seeks to address the current lack of representation of Hindus in the decision-making process of Britain, by giving those who have the inclination and talent to enter into politics a chance to gain direct experience of how MPs work in their own constituency as well as in Westminister.

Currently, there are only two Hindu MPs out of 646, which is considerably lower than the proportion of Hindus in the population.

Ten individuals have been selected for the scheme, which was organised by the Hindu Forum of Britain. The programme has the support of all three leading political parties.

The young Hindus selected to participate in the programme are: Umesh Budia, 20, from London; Sundhya Raman, 31, from London; Nikunj Lukka, 19, from Leicester; Sanjay Rawal, 21, from London; Sangna Kotecha, 25, from Oxford; Selina Rawal, 23, from Surrey; Deepti Pancholi, 25, from London; Rishi Sehgal, 20, from London; Aman Rattan, 21, from Essex; and Shivali Dave, 19, from London.

Ramesh Kallidai, secretary general of the Hindu Forum of Britain, said regarding the programme: "If our values, concerns and traditions are to be understood and listened to then we must be part of the country's democratic process. This is the first step in making sure this happens."

CLICK HERE TO COMMENT / DISCUSS