Starmer has resorted to same political doctrine. Ever since exit of the Marxist face of the part Corbyn as the leaders, Starmer has been desperately trying to woo the Indian diaspora and strengthen his position. The much awaited opportunity was provided by his meeting with the team of Labour Friends of India (LFIN) on March 30. Some of the LFIN team members described Jeremy Corbyn as ‘anti-India’.

He ought to be credited for cementing the wide differences and succeeding in identifying the Labour Party with the Indians. Pursuing a pragmatic policy in a true diplomatic spirt, just after the meeting, he said; “Constitutional issues in India are a matter for the Indian Parliament, and Kashmir is a bilateral issue for India and Pakistan to resolve peacefully.” He also added; “Labour is an internationalist party and stands for the defence of human rights everywhere.”

Corbyn never approved of the stand of Modi government on Kashmir and at the Labour’s 2019 conference, in November 2018 the party had in fact passed a motion criticising the actions of Modi government on the Kashmiri conflict, and said the people of Kashmir should have self-determination rights. This was severely resented by the LFIN and it condemned the “anti-Indian rhetoric contained in the emergency motion on Kashmir”. This strained the relation of LFIN with the Labour.

The policy motion approved by conference also called for international monitors to be admitted to the region. Tweeting in August 2019 Corbyn had also made his views clear: “The situation in Kashmir is deeply disturbing. Human rights abuses taking place are unacceptable. The rights of the Kashmiri people must be respected and UN resolutions implemented.”

Nevertheless the chairperson Ian Lavery issued a letter after conference describing Kashmir as a bilateral issue for India and Pakistan to resolve, and said Labour was opposed to external interference. But this was not sufficient to assuage the feelings of the LFIN. Last year it warned that the Labour Party “must ensure it is never seen to take the support of the Indian community for granted”.

Starmer making a U-turn from the stand of Corbyn has nonetheless managed to send a clear message that he supports the stand and action of Modi and his government on Kashmir. He even pledged to promote UK-India ties;“A Labour government under my leadership will be determined to build even stronger business links with India and to co-operate on the global stage on issues such as climate change. I look forward to meeting the Indian High Commissioner in due course to open a renewed dialogue between the Labour Party and the people of India.”

After this development though the LFIN extended support to Starner it has put a big question mark on other Asian immigrants, especially Pakistanis who constitute a major support base for Labour. Party insiders feel that Starmer’s stand would vertically split the party. They also nurse the feeling that in the existing situation when Boris Johnson has inducted a good number of Indian origin leaders as ministers in his government, the loyalty of the Indians to Labour could not be guaranteed.

It is also a fact a significant proportion of Indians have been supporters of Conservatives. They nurse the view that this would prove to be counterproductive. To what extent the Indians could be relied is not sure. On the other hand the Pakistanis have been the strong traditional support base for Labour. A major section of the leaders argue that the party should be explicit and vocal in its support for the Kashmiri people’s right to self-determination. It remains to be seen how the Pakistani community responds politically to Starmer’s perceived pro-India stance.

There were ripples in the UK when India made fundamental changes in the status of Jammu and Kashmir in August 2019, leading to violence outside the Indian high commission and anger in sections of the Indian community against Labour.

After his meeting with LFIN Starmer even promised “A Labour Government under my leadership will be determined to build even stronger business links with India and to co-operate on the global stage on issues such as climate change. I look forward to meeting the Indian high commissioner in due course to open a renewed dialogue between the Labour Party and the people of India”.

Starmer is not sure of how far his overture to LFIN would help him is also manifest in his move to write letter to the Muslim Council of Britain (MCB), which sought a clarification from him: “Our position on Kashmir has not changed, we support and recognise previous UN resolutions on the rights of the Kashmiri people but maintain that if we are to find a lasting settlement, to end this conflict, that can only be achieved if India and Pakistan working together, with the people of Kashmir”.

It is not clear at this stage that to what extent his letter to MCB will help LFIN to continue to help Starmer. But one thing is certain that the Labour rank and file have turned sceptical of his moves. Dissenting voices have started surfacing. Seema Chandwani, the vice-chair of London Labour, tweeted on April 30: "Keir Starmer cannot meet with an unaffiliated unaccountable group of people and change the Conference position on Kashmir unilaterally."

In Labour heartlands, Kashmir is ultra-sensitive. In late summer 1995, a Labour conference resolution described Kashmir as an area “bounded by” India and other countries and declared Labour “believes in” the UN resolutions that called for a plebiscite.” But now the new Labour leader has over-turned that 25-year-old policy. During his first dialogue with the LFIN Keir Starmer said Kashmir was “a bilateral issue for India and Pakistan to resolve peacefully“. He emphasised that such issues should not divide communities in Britain. (IPA Service)