In UK Parliament, opposition criticises PM Boris Johnson's visit to Gujarat JCB factory

The Opposition parties in the UK have questioned in Parliament Prime Minister Boris Johnson's decision to visit a British-owned bulldozer factory in Gujarat during his visit to India last week.

A number of Labour Party MPs, including Indian-origin Nadia Whittome, questioned Johnson's visit to the JCB factory in Halol despite the use of some of the company's equipment in the controversial demolition of properties in north-west Delhi in the wake of recent communal clashes in Jahangirpuri.

The factory visit had created a stir across social media, pointing to the use of JCB equipment in the Municipal Corporation of Delhi's "anti-encroachment" drive in Delhi, an issue referred to the courts.

Vicky Ford, the Under-Secretary of State in the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), was deputed on behalf of the government and said the visit would "supercharge" the UK-India trading relationship and that the issue of human rights is regarded as equally important.