Anglo-Indians want representation restored in parliament, state legislature

The Anglo-Indian community in Uttar Pradesh has demanded restoration of their right to have representation in parliament and state legislature that was scrapped by the Centre in 2020

The Anglo-Indian community in Uttar Pradesh has demanded restoration of their right to have representation in Parliament and state legislature that was scrapped by the Indian government in 2020 through a constitutional amendment.

The president-in-chief of the All India Anglo-Indian Association, Barry o' Brien said the population of the community in India is over 4 lakhs, but based on an erroneous 2011 census result, which stated that the number is just 296, the community's right to have representation in legislature bodies was scrapped by the government.

"We have written several letters to the governments, but our requests have not been answered," he said.

Anglo-Indians are individuals of a mix of English and Indian ancestry. Since the community was not native to any state, hence, its members were nominated to Parliament and state assemblies. It served as a platform to air their grievances.

"We have adopted Indian culture and learned vernacular languages with time. In the 1960s only 10 per cent of the Anglo-Indian population spoke Hindi, but today it has increased to about 95 per cent," he said.

--IANS

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