Conservative candidate for London mayor says voting for Labour rival Sadiq Khan will put family heirlooms at risk

This article is more than 4 years old

This article is more than 4 years old

The Conservative candidate for London mayor, Zac Goldsmith, has been accused of a smear campaign against his Labour rival specifically targeted at minority ethnic voters warning them a vote for Sadiq Khan would put their family heirlooms at risk.

Leaflets sent out in Goldsmith’s name appeared to warn Indian voters in the city that a vote for Khan could put their family jewellery at risk.



It said Goldsmith would stand up for the British Indian community by getting police to focus on protecting family homes from burglary, whereas Khan’s party supported “a wealth tax on family jewellery”.

The leaflet, which the Guardian has seen, also said that Khan, the Labour candidate and current MP for Tooting, posed a risk for London’s future because he had not attended the UK welcome rally for Narendra Modi, the Indian prime minister, at Wembley stadium last year.



Facebook Twitter Pinterest The Goldsmith leaflet, delivered to British Indian Londoners, shown to the Guardian. Photograph: Gita Malhotra

A spokesman for Goldsmith said he could not comment on campaign tactics but confirmed the leaflets had been approved.



He added: “Khan experimented with Corbyn and helped elect a Labour leadership who want a new tax on family heirlooms, including jewellery – if he is allowed to experiment with London from City Hall he represents a threat to the economic security of every family in our city.”

Gita Malhotra, a Londoner who lives in Newham, told the Guardian she was offended by the letter she had received from the Goldsmith campaign. “I got a letter in the post yesterday and it was clearly targeted and directly addressed to me,” she said.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Goldsmith leaflet, delivered to British-Indian Londoners. Photograph: Gita Malhotra

“I’m a British Indian but I had a visceral reaction to this. I’m a Londoner, I’m 47, and this seemed divisive,” she said, adding: “It seemed as though he picked the brains of an adviser and has played on the anxieties of the south Asian community.”

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Goldsmith leaflet, delivered to British-Indian Londoners. Photograph: Gita Malhotra

She added the campaign literature “made assumptions on what British Indians cared about”.

Goldsmith has a strong relationship with Kingston Muslim Association in his constituency and has held surgeries for constituents at the local mosque.

Hashim Bhatti, a Tory councillor and Conservative Muslim Forum Member, told the Guardian: “I haven’t seen the literature at all but I firmly believe Londoners will pull together and vote for a new mayor based on their policies and merit but also in their ability to continue to make London a great city.”



In another case of the Goldsmith campaign targeting minority ethnic communities first reported on politics.co.uk, the Goldsmith campaign sent a letter to British Tamils living in London, also suggesting a vote for the Labour candidate could lead to a new “wealth tax on family jewellery”.

“As a government minister, Sadiq Khan did not use his position to speak about Sri Lanka or the concerns of the Tamil community in parliament. His party are beginning to adopt policies that will mean higher taxes on your family and your family’s heirlooms and belongings,” the leaflet states.

Uma Kumaran, a Labour party adviser who is Tamil, said the leaflets were “downright patronising”.

Uma Kumaran (@Uma_Kumaran) Leaflet friend received. Rly, the v worst of Tory party in action. Is it find a Tamil day in @ZacGoldsmith campaign? pic.twitter.com/QKmAYlvQtp

The Daily Sikh, a popular Sikh website, wrote that the campaign targeted at minority ethnic voters was a “disastrous move” by Goldsmith’s team.

The op-ed went on to say: “In what can only be described as an ill-informed and arrogant mailshot, Goldsmith’s team targeted the postal addresses of tens of thousands of Londoners of ‘Indian’ origin.

“For some bizarre reason, Goldsmith assumed all the 120,000 Sikhs were middle-class Hindus, running family businesses, concerned about burglaries and possessions whilst welcoming Modi’s UK visit last year.”

Previously, the word “radical” had been used to describe Khan’s policies in Goldsmith leaflets, which Khan objected to, saying the use of such language about a Muslim candidate was playing with fire.

The Muslim Council of Britain would not comment on the campaign but said: “When British Muslims take part in politics and in the democratic life of our country, they deserve to be treated fairly and not be subject to smears that they are somehow closet extremists … Sadiq Khan deserves to be scrutinised on his record and policies, not smears by insinuation.”