Hounslow Labour Group Split over Appointment of Mayor
Some councillors question Shantanu Rajawat's leadership style
Cllr Afzaal Kiani
May 12, 2023
A furious row has broken out within the Labour group in Hounslow over the appointment of this year’s Mayor.
The leader of the council, Cllr Shantanu Rajawat, has decided that the largely ceremonial role should be carried out in the current year by Cllr Afzaal Kiani who represents Hounslow Heath ward.
However, other Labour councillors have both publicly and privately expressed concern that they have not been able to have a vote on the appointment with some even suggesting that it shows that the leader’s style has become dictatorial.
Messages from a Labour group WhatsApp group were published on the Brentford Today & TV Facebook page in which it is questioned whether he has kept to his promise of leading a ‘listening council’ made when his administration began. Cllr Amrit Mann issued a warning that this kind of leadership could mean ‘the public will turf us out as in 2006’ referring to the last time Labour failed to win a majority of seats on the council.
The WhatsApp group on which many of these complaints appeared has now reportedly been closed.
Some of the councillors have also raised concerns about the issue of Cllr Kiani’s departure from the Home Office being raised again, particularly if the story is picked up by Private Eye. He was suspended as a role as an immigration officer in 2014 when it was found that his wife worked in a related field. She worked for a company called Global Immigration Management Ltd which provided advice on citizenship and immigration issues including work permits. He challenged the dismissal by saying it was motivated by his race and religion, but his appeal was dismissed.
Cllr Kiani now works as a consultant and has lived in the Hounslow Heath ward for the last two decades. He has served as a school governor since 1990 and is Chair of the Hounslow Heath branch of the Labour Party.
The decision is due to be ratified at a Labour group meeting to be held on Monday 15 May and some councillors suggested that a three-line whip will be necessary for Labour councillors to confirm Cllr Kiani as Mayor.
Like Reading Articles Like This? Help Us Produce More This site remains committed to providing local community news and public interest journalism. Articles such as the one above are integral to what we do. We aim to feature as much as possible on local societies, charities based in the area, fundraising efforts by residents, community-based initiatives and even helping people find missing pets. We've always done that and won't be changing, in fact we'd like to do more. However, the readership that these stories generates is often below that needed to cover the cost of producing them. Our financial resources are limited and the local media environment is intensely competitive so there is a constraint on what we can do. We are therefore asking our readers to consider offering financial support to these efforts. Any money given will help support community and public interest news and the expansion of our coverage in this area. A suggested monthly payment is £8 but we would be grateful for any amount for instance if you think this site offers the equivalent value of a subscription to a daily printed newspaper you may wish to consider £20 per month. If neither of these amounts is suitable for you then contact info@neighbournet.com and we can set up an alternative. All payments are made through a secure web site. One-off donations are also appreciated. Choose The Amount You Wish To Contribute. If you do support us in this way we'd be interested to hear what kind of articles you would like to see more of on the site – send your suggestions to the editor. For businesses we offer the chance to be a corporate sponsor of community content on the site. For £30 plus VAT per month you will be the designated sponsor of at least one article a month with your logo appearing if supplied. If there is a specific community group or initiative you'd like to support we can make sure your sponsorship is featured on related content for a one off payment of £50 plus VAT. All payments are made through a secure web site. |