Support for Nigel Farage Among British Indians in Harrow
Savitha Prakash, an NHS doctor and first-generation immigrant residing in the London borough of Harrow, has expressed her support for Reform UK and its leader, Nigel Farage. She draws parallels between Farage and India’s prime minister, Narendra Modi, emphasizing their shared approach to prioritizing the majority's interests.
“He’s [Modi] one of those people, like Nigel, he walks the talk. He made [a] difference to the country,”said Prakash, who chairs Reform UK’s Harrow branch.
Prakash, 47, noted that both Farage and Modi have faced criticism for allegedly scapegoating marginalized communities but maintain a focus on putting the majority first.
“There was a time before [Modi] came into power that minority appeasement was normal,”she explained.
“Everybody believed that if you want to be in power, you have to appease the majority. Today’s Nigel speaks the same thing. He speaks about looking out for the majority.”
Prakash, originally from Mysore in southern India, identified this perspective as a key factor in the increasing support for Reform UK among British Indians.
Last year, a group of Oxford academics specializing in British Indian community analysis reported that support for Reform UK among British Indians rose from 4% in 2024 to 13% in 2025. The report noted,
“British Indian support for Reform is significantly lower than that of the general UK population. However, there is a strong upwards trend in support.”
Prakash’s personal journey reflects this trend. She arrived in the UK in 2003 at age 23 on a visitor visa to complete medical exams, subsequently securing a junior doctor position in the NHS. She was later granted a work visa, indefinite leave to remain (ILR), and British citizenship.
“When I started working in metropolitan areas, like [London] or Birmingham or places where there’s lots of immigrant populations, I slowly started seeing how things have changed in Britain,”she said.
“This was not the Britain I moved into. It looks more like regressing back to how things were in India.”
Prakash is leading a group of 55 Reform UK candidates in Harrow for the local elections scheduled on 7 May.
The 2021 census revealed that British Asians constitute nearly half the population in the north-west London borough, which has been regarded as a Conservative stronghold in recent years. A YouGov poll published recently indicated that the Conservatives could secure more than twice the votes of any other party in Harrow.
Bob Blackman, the Conservative MP for Harrow East since 2010, has gained support by promoting pro-Modi narratives. In 2024, Blackman was awarded the Padma Shri, one of India’s highest civilian honors, and hosted an event celebrating Modi’s birthday in the House of Commons.
Prakash, who previously supported Boris Johnson, criticized the Conservative Party for abandoning its original agenda, particularly regarding the failure to implement plans for the forced deportation of illegal migrants to Rwanda.
Reform UK’s Immigration Policies and Public Sentiment
Prakash endorses Reform UK’s priorities, including proposals to abolish ILR, which currently grants migrants rights and access to benefits. Under Reform’s plan, migrants would need to reapply for visas every five years and meet stricter requirements such as higher salary thresholds and English language proficiency. Critics have labeled these measures as harsh and unjust.
“The country decides the amount of net immigration they need to have,”Prakash stated.
“I wouldn’t be wanting to have more than the required number of people in more than the required number of places. I don’t think we should be misunderstanding work visas as lifetime visas to convert into citizenship.”
When asked if she sympathizes with migrants pursuing a life in the UK as she did, Prakash responded,
“I have sympathy for these people who have been falsely shown all the dreams of life in the UK.”
Residents in Harrow express concerns about asylum seekers and immigration policies. A 29-year-old waiter from Gujarat, who preferred to remain anonymous, commented on perceived disparities in treatment between asylum seekers and legal migrants.
“Asylum seekers, they get to stay in hotels where the government is paying for them … Their meals are taken care of and that’s our tax money that goes there. Whereas us, who [have] a legal status coming from a different country, wanting a better life, have to pay a lot of that.”
The government reports having halved the number of hotels used to house asylum seekers and removed nearly 60,000 illegal migrants and foreign national offenders since the 2024 election.
A 28-year-old Mumbai-born man living in Harrow, who also wished to remain unnamed, identified as an undecided voter open to Reform UK. He criticized the Labour government for stricter legal immigration policies, including extending the ILR qualifying period to 10 years.
Controversies and Challenges Facing Reform UK
Prakash’s strong support for Reform UK may surprise some, given the party’s controversies. In October, Reform MP Sarah Pochin apologized after remarks perceived as racially insensitive, stating,
“It drives me mad when I see adverts full of black people, full of Asian people.”
has reported allegations from more than a dozen of Nigel Farage’s school contemporaries accusing him of bullying. Farage has denied these claims, asserting he never harmed anyone
“with intent.”
Prakash dismissed accusations of racism against Reform UK as attempts to intimidate supporters.
“People wouldn’t be putting me in that position if they were racist. And people wouldn’t put Zia [Yusuf, Reform’s spokesperson for home affairs] in the position that he is in if they were racist. And that explains everything. We are not racist.”
She highlighted the irony of Reform UK facing racism allegations while its activists in Harrow endure online abuse, which has led some to cease using social media. Recently, Farage criticized the owner of X (formerly Twitter), stating that Reform UK candidates from minority ethnic backgrounds face
“utterly appalling abuse.”
Prakash said she generally ignores the abuse, attributing it to entrenched biases.
“The amount of brainwashing each one has undergone to have this hatred towards one particular party,”she remarked.
Focus on the Election Campaign
Prakash remains focused on the upcoming election campaign. She observes a broad spectrum of voters showing interest in Reform UK, including former Labour supporters, staunch Conservatives, and previously silent voters.
“People are coming forward, both from old Labour voters, the staunch Conservative voters and the silent voters,”she said.
“Everybody is overwhelmingly saying now: stop the appeasement. We have to put Britain first.”
