Kirklees Faith Network calls for British-Indian military history to be taught in schools

The call is in response to Dame Sara Khan’s report on social cohesion, published last month, in which she was critical of how Batley Grammar School handled protests against one of its teachers in 2021.

Material used by a teacher in a religious studies lesson led to protests outside the school gates and a free speech row.

In a statement released via the Kirklees Faith Network, Sufi Muslim Imams from the district said that more focus on our shared history would be a positive step.

The statement said: “There are no archive photographs of the British-Indian Army at the moment in any school history textbooks, even after a full century since the First World War came to an end.

“All minority ethnic children, as well as those from white English speaking backgrounds, deserve an opportunity to learn about such an important aspect of our shared history through these amazing images.

“These images will go a long way to complement our children's PSE lessons, and promote inclusivity.

“The timing is perfect now that a debate is taking place to reinterpret history following the death of George Floyd.

“But such a positive move can only become a concrete reality if this current Conservative government, along with the Department for Education and Ofsted, is ready and willing to show backbone and leadership from the top by incorporating such a forgotten common history as an important embedded extension to the PSE curriculum.

“There are many Muslim schoolchildren in our local schools, including those attending the Batley Multi-Academy Trust of schools, whose great-grandparents fought bravely and with distinction for Britain as soldiers enlisted in the British-Indian Army.

“The British-Indian Army was the largest volunteer force ever to be recruited in British military history.

"Over a million Muslim men volunteered to fight for Britain during the First World War. Nearly 71,000 died on the battlefields of France between 1914 and 1918.

“Another two million men from the provinces of Punjab, Kashmir and the North West Frontier regions of what was then the vast country of British-India fought with valour on Britain's side in the Second World War.”