LONDON: Pictures of recently elected Muslim mayor of London, Sadiq Khan visiting city’s famous Shri Swaminarayan temple in Neasden have gone viral on social media.
At temple, he interacted with people and also participated in some of the rituals. In one of the pictures, a Hindu priest s is seen tying a string around his wrist.
“Shri Swaminarayan Mandir in Neasden is one of my favourite places in London, and it was great to visit again this weekend,” he said in a post on social media.
“As Mayor, I will stand up for London’s Indian community, and strengthen London’s friendship with India. I look forward to leading a trade delegation to India at the earliest opportunity,” his Facebook post said.
“My life story will be familiar to many Londoners of Indian origin. My parents moved here to build a better life for their family in the 1970’s. They instilled a real work ethic in us kids, and huge respect for education, entrepreneurship and community,” his post read.
Sharing his plans after taking over as the London’s Mayor, Mr Khan said, “Supporting growth and innovation will be a priority – as someone who has helped to run my own business, I’ll be the most pro-business Mayor London has ever had. I’ll support small businesses and challenge the Government’s unfair Visa restrictions which make it harder for businesses to find the skills they need.”
Expressing concern over the growing threat of extremism, the Mayor said, “My number one priority will always be keeping Londoners safe – whether from anti-social behaviour or violent crime. I’m particularly concerned about the growing threat of extremism and radicalisation in London, and I don’t hesitate to say that I’ll be the British Muslim who takes the fight to the extremists.”
“I look forward to my next visit to Shri Swaminarayan Mandir, hopefully, as Mayor of London,” he added.
