London Diary: Muslim women power     

Muslim women power

The news has made international headlines, and been hailed as a "historic" moment for Britain's conservative and notoriously patriarchal Muslim community. Just in case it hasn't made it to India or you have missed it, meet Zara Mohammed who is making waves after being elected the first female head of the Muslim Council of Britain (MCB), UK's largest Muslim group.

At 28, she is also the youngest person to lead the organisation which in the past has been accused of harbouring fundamentalist and misogynist elements. The erstwhile Labour government of Tony Blair had stopped dealing with it over allegations that it was not fully supportive of the government's anti-terror campaign.

The election of Ms Mohammed, a training and development consultant from Glasgow, Scotland, will help refurbish its image by presenting her as the new progressive face of the community. She has promised to steer the council and its member organisations, which include mosques, schools, charitable associations and professional networks, into a more forward-looking direction.

“My vision is to continue to build a truly inclusive, diverse and representative body; one which is driven by the needs of British Muslims for the common good,” she said. Her election, she hoped, would “inspire more women and young people to come forward to take on leadership roles”. Liberal Muslims are delighted.

Sadiq Khan, the mayor of London, hailed her victory as "terrific” news for Britain's 3.3 million strong Muslim community. Baroness Sayeeda Warsi, who became famous as Britain's first female Muslim cabinet minister in David Cameron's government, called it a “huge moment” describing women as the "real powerhouse in our communities".

The hype done, the wait now begins to see whether Ms Mohammed is able to live up to it.

Dwindling Indian media pack

When I arrived in London as The Hindu correspondent some 20 years ago, there were nearly a dozen full or part-time Indian correspondents in the UK, and in years to come their numbers swelled. At one point, there must have been 15 or so of us.

Today, there are just three or four —mostly stringers. No Indian newspaper has a permanent presence in the UK, HT being the latest to dispense with its correspondent. Even the venerable Hindu which once legitimately took pride in having its own correspondents in all major world capitals has now only a nominal presence in London.

And it's not just the UK. It's almost embarrassing to look at Indian newspapers' international pages crammed with agency stories and syndicated columns. A country which fancies itself as the next big power should have its media footprints in every important region in the world. Instead, it has withdrawn even from countries where it had a presence. The most intriguing, of course, is the complete absence of the state media--DD and AIR.

Hero to zero- How political fortunes change!

Regular readers of this column might remember my numerous references last summer to the meteoric rise of Rishi Sunak from a backbench MP to become the Chancellor of the Exchequer. And how he was hailed as a hero for reviving Britain's pandemic-hit hospitality industry with his wildly successful "eat out, help out" scheme which offered diners a discount on food bills, prompting millions of lockdown-weary Brits to flock to restaurants. Sunak's popularity soared overtaking that of prime minister Boris Johnson, and triggering talk of him succeeding his boss.

Just as he had started to enjoy his new celebrity status, Sunak was brought down to earth by a second wave of coronavirus. Critics, including some of his own party colleagues, rushed to blame it on his "eat out" scheme, claiming that it made nonsense of lockdown restrictions as social-distancing norms were ignored in the scramble for a free lunch. He has since struggled amid speculation about his future. And, to think, barely months ago he was being tipped to be the next PM.

Lockdown violence

Nearly two months into a second national lockdown, Britons are starting to lose patience with tempers fraying and leading to an alarming rise in public rows over enforcing coronavirus restrictions. In recent weeks, "thousands" of violent incidents have been reported involving shoppers and enforcement workers.

According to the British Retail Consortium (BRC), verbal abuse has soared to intolerable levels. Violent attacks have risen by "600%". More than 65 industry bodies and big retailers have written to the PM calling for action against offenders and seeking protection for their staff.

Divorce, moi?

Apropos of a recent Diary item about a spike in divorce cases during the lockdown, I received an email from a PR company offering me help to save "thousands of pounds in cash and other assets" in case I was getting divorced. Sorry, wrong number. But nice attempt.

And, lastly, beware: if you find yourself using too many pronouns such as "I" and "we", it's a sign that your relationship may be heading for the rocks, as per a study.