The Labour Party's monosyllabic campaign slogan to topple the Conservative government that had been in power in Britain for 14 years was “change”. But former diplomats and foreign policy experts in India, as well as the foreign wing of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), expect a Labour government under Keir Starmer to practise continuity in India-UK relations.
Vijay Chauthaiwale, head of the BJP's foreign ministry, congratulated Starmer and the Labour Party on their election victory. “Last year, Starmer and David Lammy (the new British foreign secretary) emphasised the importance of a strong partnership between India and the UK. I am confident that the new British regime, in continuation of the (approach of the) previous government, will further strengthen UK-India relations,” Chauthaiwale said.
Nalin Surie, India's High Commissioner in London from 2009 to 2011, told Business Standard that India would continue to be a priority for Britain in the context of London's relations with developing countries and its relations with China. Post-Brexit, India is a crucial partner for Britain, whose economy, in turn, has significant strengths despite recent challenges, he said.
Surie further said he saw no reason why India-UK relations should deteriorate over the views of individual Labour MPs on Kashmir or Khalistan. Constituencies in the UK are much smaller where elections can depend on the voting behaviour of minority groups and statements are made under pressure from voters and then exaggerated, he added.
“Starmer has shown he is prepared to start from scratch, as his views on Israel show. He has shown he will take a stand in the interests of Britain, not in the interests of local interests,” Surie said.
During his election campaign, Starmer sought to repair his party's relationship with Britons in India, who had apparently become alienated under former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn over a perceived anti-India stance on Kashmir. Last week, as part of his election campaign, Starmer visited the Shree Swaminarayan Temple in Kingsbury, north London, where he sought to reassure British Hindus that there was “absolutely no place for Hinduphobia in Britain”.
Former ambassador Yogesh Gupta said Britain's stance on the issues of Kashmir and Khalistan had traditionally been shaped by Indian and Pakistani diaspora politics, historical relations with India and Pakistan and close ties with Washington. “The new Labour government will no doubt take into account these and other issues, such as India's growing weight in world politics, particularly in the Indo-Pacific context, the new opportunities offered by a rapidly growing India and the closer rapprochement between the West and India, in shaping its new India policy,” Gupta said, adding that he expected continuity in the areas of trade, investment and technology.
“As Lammy said in a recent interview, the new Labour government will also seek to strengthen its relations with India in other areas, such as military and maritime cooperation, new technologies, climate change and supply chain security,” Gupta added.
The Labour Party's election manifesto promised that the government would “seek a new strategic partnership with India, including a free trade agreement and deepening cooperation in areas such as security, education, technology and climate change”.
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