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The Guardian
7 days ago
- General
- The Guardian
‘We needed somewhere to mourn': Indian community in London keep vigil for victims
As the late afternoon sun streamed into a small square behind the Indian High Commission on Sunday, a crowd of 200 people gathered for a vigil – one of several held around the UK this weekend to remember those who died in the Air India disaster. Candles were placed beneath a bust of Jawaharlal Nehru and attenders listened to inter-faith leaders and members from the Gujarati community who had come to reflect on a shocking week of loss. Ridhi Sarmah-Kapoor and Olivia Gearson, two students whose fathers had travelled from Gujarat to London recently, laid flowers outside India House in Holborn. 'My dad frequently goes back and forth to India and he uses Air India,' said Sarmah-Kapoor. 'It gives it a personal connection – it's like these people are my family.' Gearson added: 'It needs to be honoured. There were parents coming back for their children's graduation – we're both students, it really hit hard.' Gujarati communities in the capital and other cities including Leicester have been gathering since the crash to commemorate the more than 270 people who died in one of the worst air accidents in Indian history. There have been remarkable stories, such as the Bristol student who missed the flight because she was held up in traffic and the miraculous tale of the sole survivor, Vishwash Kumar Ramesh. But the details of the lives lost – ambitions and hopes extinguished in an instant – all add to the sense of shock among British-Indians. 'We needed somewhere to mourn,' says Mayur Shikotra, who organised the vigil alongside Pranav Bhanot. Bhanot said: 'We're only a small community, many people are only one or two degrees away from the tragedy,. There aren't that many flights that come out of Gujarat directly, so it really could have been anyone. That makes it hit home.' Much has been made of the close-knit nature of the Gujarati community in the UK, a fact that has made the trauma personal for many. Narendra Thakerar was among a group of old school friends with Gujarati backgrounds who decided to come and remember those who lost their lives. 'I've flown three times in the last six months with Air India,' he said. 'It's a tragedy that no one prepares for, it's humbling and just a reminder about how fragile we are.' Bhanot said: 'It's really important that we find out what happened, we need the bodies repatriated and hopefully some compensation for loved ones – it's never going to bring anyone back but it'd be a recognition of what happened and the loss of life.' As well as grief, there was a desire for Boeing, the manufacturer of the aircraft, to be held accountable if it was at fault. 'My first thought is the Boeing 787,' says Thakerar, who is glad the fleet is being inspected by the Indian government after the disaster. Another member of the group, Mahesh Patel, said: 'The problem is when you're dealing with old planes that have been sold and resold and used and used.' There are more than 1,100 787s in service, with most major international airlines using them and its safety record in service has been good. Tata Group bought Air India from the Indian government in 2022 and announced plans last year to revamp and upgrade its fleet. 'None of us want this to happen again so there needs to be a thorough investigation,' Thakerar said.
New York Times
14-06-2025
- General
- New York Times
British Gujaratis Gather to Mourn Those Who Died in India Crash
Members of Britain's Gujarati community will gather on Saturday to mourn and remember loved ones killed in the Air India plane disaster. Of the 241 people on the plane who died, 52 were British citizens, and several others lived in England and had been headed to London from Ahmedabad, the largest city in the Indian state of Gujarat. The cause of the crash — the world's worst aviation disaster in a decade — is under investigation, with British and American teams supporting officials in India as recovery work continues at the site. Connections between Britain and Ahmedabad, where Flight AI171 took off on Thursday afternoon before crashing seconds later, run deep. More than 600,000 British Gujaratis are thought to live in the United Kingdom today. Some came via Uganda in the 1970s, after the dictator Idi Amin expelled his country's Asian population and Britain gave refuge to around 27,000 people. They settled in towns and cities including London and Leicester, in the Midlands. Others came from India in the 1950s and '60s. One of the largest communities is in Harrow, northwest London, where the International Siddhashram Shakti Center plans to hold a memorial service on Saturday afternoon. Although it is a Hindu temple, people of all faiths and none have been invited to join the interfaith prayer and candlelight vigil for victims. Later on Saturday, another memorial is set to be held by the Brent Indian Association at its headquarters in Wembley, four miles away. Memorial services at Hindu temples, mosques and churches have been taking place across Britain. In the Midlands city of Leicester, home to the disaster's sole survivor, Vishwash Kumar Ramesh, friends and relatives were mourning his brother Ajay, who was also on the plane along with several other passengers from the city. At the Shree Hindu Temple and Community Centre, a few minutes' walk from the family home, women were praying for the dead on Friday afternoon. Kishan Acharya, a priest at the temple, said that he and many members of his congregation are Gujarati and were 'experiencing trauma' over the disaster. Mr. Ramesh's uncle is on the temple's committee, he said, while other local temples had told him they had also lost worshipers. 'So many devotees came today and the only thing that was in their mouth was about this air crash; who was related to who,' Mr. Acharya said. 'There were so many people from Leicester who were on the flight.' 'People are shocked, they are not able to digest it,' he added. 'They are not able to believe what happened.'
BBC News
13-06-2025
- General
- BBC News
Preston temple vigil held for India plane crash victims
Prayers were held at a Hindu temple in Lancashire for those who lost their lives in the Air India crash in London Gatwick-bound flight crashed soon after take-off from the city's airport in the western state of Gujarat at about 09:00 BST on Thursday, killing 242 people on board. One person - a British man - gathered at the Gujarat Hindu Society Temple in Preston on Friday to pray for those who had died and their loved president Ishwer Tailor said he hoped the vigil would give people some "consolation". Mr Tailor said Preston has a large Gujarati community and admitted he wanted to do something sooner than the weekend "with people being in shock"."It is a catastrophe not just for people who have passed away but also for India," he said."We have had several people coming up to us and telling stories of some of their friends and relatives who have perished in this terrible accident and the stories keep coming." He said the temple doors would remain open for all communities."Whole families have been destroyed. All we can do in this moment in time is pray and make sure we remember them in our prayers," he said. There were 53 Britons on board the flight, along with 169 Indian nationals, seven Portuguese nationals and one couple who died in the crash - 72-year-old Adam Taju and his wife Hasina, 70 - were described as the "foundation of our family" by their granddaughters, from Blackburn, Lancashire. Additional reporting by Anna Jameson and Nishma Hindocha Listen to the best of BBC Radio Lancashire on Sounds and follow BBC Lancashire on Facebook, X and Instagram. You can also send story ideas via Whatsapp to 0808 100 2230.
The Guardian
13-06-2025
- General
- The Guardian
‘All our community are sad': shock and solace as British Gujaratis come together after Air India crash
'We started in a terrace house back in 1971, when all the Asians were expelled from Uganda – we got bigger and bigger, and now we are many,' Dhiren Kanabar said of the Shree Hindu temple and community centre in Leicester, where he works. The building at St Barnabas Road is testament to the growth and resilience of the city's Gujarati community, who collected money, in their earliest days in the UK, to move from a makeshift place of worship – a family home in Cromford Street – to one of the first purpose-built Hindu temples in the UK. On Friday, the day after the tragedy of Air India flight 171, in which a Boeing 787 Dreamliner crashed shortly after takeoff in Ahmedabad, in the Gujarat region of India, killing at least 265 people, sorrow descended on the temple. People came to light candles, find out how they could help, and take comfort in the speaker's message of common universal humanity. In this close-knit, British Gujarati community, everybody knows somebody affected. Relatives of Vishwash Kumar Ramesh, 40, the sole survivor, are active members. One of Vishwash's brothers, Ajay Kumar Ramesh, is presumed dead. 'People, whenever they have time, in the evenings, and especially weekends, get together in prayer to the gods and goddesses,' Kanabar said. 'But today, we are in mourning. It's really tragic, really shocking.' All over the UK, meetings of British Indians, Hindus, Gujaratis and their friends and neighbours have become impromptu vigils for the dead. In the North Evington district of Leicester, well-wishers clustered in the doorways of terraces, anxious for news about Vishwash and Ajay. In this vibrant neighbourhood, crying could be heard from one house on Friday. Dozens of people stood quietly outside the property, which belongs to relatives of the brothers. Early in the afternoon, an inconsolable woman emerged, flanked by about a dozen other women, and was helped into a van – thought to be bound for an airport, then on to India. There are about 800,000 British Gujaratis in the UK, many living in London, Lancashire and the East Midlands, including Hindus, Muslims, Jains and Christians. As speculation spread across communities, and news trickled out through news sites, broadcasters and social media, the National Council for Gujarati Organisations UK became a go-between for people who feared their loved ones were on the flight and authorities in Britain and India. The organisation's vice-president, Krishna Pujara, regularly travels on the London Gatwick to Gujarat route, returning home from a visit to the region just last week. When news of the crash broke, she was deluged with calls from people who feared she was on the plane, as well as from those needing support, emergency visas and information. The meeting Pujara holds every Friday in Enfield, north London, with members of the women's charity Enfield Saheli, which she runs, this week became a place for women from the Gujarati, Bengali, Punjabi and Muslim communities to come together in solidarity. They meditated before singing in prayer around tables lit with candles. 'It's not only about Gujaratis, we are a community that is united within the wider community,' Pujara said. Onboard the flight was Vijay Rupani, a former chief minister of Gujarat. Pujara said she was due to attend a Father's Day and religious celebration for him on Sunday, which has now been cancelled; his relatives have gone to India after obtaining emergency visas. 'We are a sisterhood here of all different community groups,' Pujara said. 'When tragedy strikes everybody gets together.' One member of the group, Manu Mistry, 78, said: ''We feel very sorry about that plane crash, people who died, those who lost their loved ones. All our community, all our children, all our grandchildren, we are all sad. It's horrible.' Another, Mayadevi Shah, said her husband regularly travelled to his home town of Ahmedabad with Air India. After news of the tragedy, it was decided he no longer would. 'He's not going with this flight any more,' said Shah, adding he had returned as recently as last month. 'Luckily, we don't travel this month.' Shah was among the women chanting in prayer for the victims and their families at the Saheli meeting. The previous day, she had been shocked to learn that a friend had lost her son, who was returning from India after visiting relatives. 'We read the name then we realised,' Shah said. 'The news came and we were shocked. May their souls rest in peace and God give strength to them and their families. Om, Shanti, Shanti.'
BBC News
12-06-2025
- General
- BBC News
Prayers offered at London temples for Air India crash victims
Prayers have been held at Hindu temples across north-west London following the Air India crash in London Gatwick bound flight crashed soon after take-off from the city's airport in the western state of Gujarat, killing 241 people. One person - a British man - Rajrajeshwar, the spiritual leader of the Palmerston Road Temple in Harrow, said some of the victims had attended his temple for prayer."Today we are praying for them because it is the only thing we can give to the departed soul," he said. Tarun Patel, a spokesperson for the Neasden Temple, said the tragedy would have a particular impact on the Gujarati communities London, many of whom were concentrated in Harrow, Brent and Hounslow."When we heard it this morning, it was one of disbelief," he said."It took time to really understand what's happening, and when it sunk in, it was very sad, devastating. Innocent lives affected." While those who attend his temple does include a high proportion of Gujarati people, he said he was not aware of any in his congregation who were on the flight but that "the situation is very fluid"."That's not to say that members are not affected. I think it's a bit more than just people within this congregation... people at large have lost family and friends, and for that we feel their sorrow."He said his temple, and likely others across London and the UK, would continue holding opportunities to come together and pray for the "innocent lives lost".
