Labour’s election win sparks hopes for stronger, more ‘pragmatic’ India-UK ties

With a shift in policy on the contentious issue of Kashmir, the Labour Party hopes to foster a stronger relationship with New Delhi

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Labour Party leader Sir Keir Starmer during a visit to the Shree Swaminarayan Mandir Hindu temple in Kingsbury, London, while on the election campaign trail on June 28. Photo: AP

Published: 6:00pm, 9 Jul 2024

A fresh chapter in London-New Delhi ties is expected, particularly on the thorny issue of Kashmir, with a reformed British leadership under Keir Starmer promising a pivot from past disputes over the issue after his Labour Party’s thumping victory at the polls.

The Labour Party has had a tense relationship with successive Indian governments over the years. Under the leadership of Jeremy Corbyn, the party passed a motion in September 2019 calling for “international intervention in Kashmir and a UN led-referendum”.

This was in contrast with the British government’s view that Kashmir is a bilateral issue between India and Pakistan. New Delhi at the time slammed the resolution as pandering to “vote-bank interests”.

Shairee Malhotra, an associate fellow at the Observer Research Foundation (ORF) in New Delhi, said that under Starmer’s leadership, the Labour Party had reformed itself from a more left-wing to a rather centrist party.

“This pragmatic direction bodes well for India-UK ties, which are already on an upswing, under a Labour government. Unlike Jeremy Corbyn, who had a habit of wrangling New Delhi on the Kashmir issue, Starmer has emphasised that he would prioritise ties with India and even gone so far as to admit mistakes that Labour previously made in its India policy,” Malhotra said.

Keir Starmer visiting the Shree Swaminarayan Mandir Hindu temple on June 28. Photo: AP

In October 2020, Corbyn was suspended from the Labour Party for refusing to accept the results of a report on antisemitism within the party. He was later reinstated as a Labour member but chose to be an independent candidate and has retained his Islington seat with 24,120 votes.