UK Hindu temple thrown lifeline by judge after council plans to sell its premises to a mosque

LONDON: A temple serving 18,000 Hindus in Peterborough and surrounding counties has been thrown a lifeline by a high court judge who has issued a temporary injunction preventing the sale of the building it is in to a mosque.

The Bharat Hindu Samaj Temple (BHS) was established in the New England Complex in Peterborough in 1986 by Ugandan Hindu refugees. Apart from being a place of worship, it offers luncheon clubs for the elderly, runs a dementia centre, yoga classes, and Indian language classes.

Peterborough city council decided to sell the building. In Oct 2025 the temple put in a £1.4 million bid to purchase it. It was one of two bidders. In Dec the council cabinet decided to sell it to “Bidder B”. The identity was never disclosed by the council, but the temple found out via its solicitors that it was a mosque.

This decision was called in by the scrutiny committee amid concerns proper processes were not followed but the cabinet reaffirmed its decision on Feb 10. This triggered the temple to commence a judicial review in the London high court challenging the council’s decision, naming the Masjid Khadijah and the Islamic Centre of Khadijah mosque in Peterborough as interested parties.

On Feb 27 Justice Fordham directed that the council must not take any “irreversible step” concerning the New England Complex, saying there was “a strong prima facie case” supporting granting interim relief. A further order will be made on or after March 5.

Ekta Patel, temple vice-president, said: “I fully support the injunction put forward by Bharat Hindu Samaj and I am grateful that Mr Fordham recognises the gravity of this matter. The manner in which the sale has been justified raises serious concerns. There must be transparency and accountability in the council’s decision-making process.”

“I am delighted with the high court order against Peterborough City Council. We have lots of support from Hindu mandirs, Hindu organisations and individuals all over the UK,” said Kishor Ladwa, temple president.

Tory peer Rami Ranger has written to communities secretary Steve Reed calling on him to intervene and overturn the council’s decision.

A spokesperson for Peterborough City Council said: “We are aware of the legal action being pursued in relation to the sale of the New England Complex and will now engage in the legal process. We are not selling the building with vacant possession — the building is being sold with the tenants in place.”

But this does little to assuage the temple management.

“Such assurances are not legally binding guarantees of long-term security, and established legal mechanisms exist through which future ownership arrangements can alter tenancy conditions, restrict use, or ultimately require vacancy, particularly if the landlord is another faith group,” BHS said in a statement. “The community will continue to pursue every lawful and constructive avenue available to protect its right to worship.”

“We were shocked when the council did not choose us. The elderly were crying in the temple. We said we would match the other bid but never heard back. It is very rare to move idols. You would do everything possible not to move them,” explained temple trustee Gauri Chaudhary. “We have not heard from the council that we can stay as tenants. We have not even heard back that we have lost the bid. We don’t know if we can stay in the building, and, if so, what the contract would look like, what restrictions there might be. A faith being custodian of another faith is not a civil way to be in a diverse society. If it was the other way round, the other bidder would feel the same. I will never forget the kids asking: ‘Where will we celebrate our festivals?’”

For 15 years, BHS had been occupying the premises rent-free and has been in continual dialogue with the council regarding the future of the site, negotiating to buy it for £1. But in Aug 2024 the £1 offer was withdrawn when the council received an unsolicited £1.2 million bid. The temple was advised by the council to bid £1.3m, which it did, but never got a response. It never went to cabinet.

The council had a change of administration in May 2025 which established a property board which decided they would not accept the offer and it would go to open tender.

In Sept BHS was given one month to prepare its bid, with no professional support. “I felt this was unreasonable and outrageous,” said councillor Roger Antunes, one of three councillors who called for the decision to be called in by the scrutiny committee. The committee pointed out the council can negotiate a sale with a community organisation who have exceptional circumstances. “I believe 40 years of history in that site warrants those conditions to be honoured. The council need not have accepted an unsolicited bid,” Antunes said. But the cabinet rejected this advice. “We are still waiting for many of the documents asked at scrutiny to be provided. There is no security of tenure at the site. The new landlord can arrive and give them notice. The Hindu community have acted in good faith and I feel they have been unfairly treated by the council,” Antunes said.

Dharmesh Pandaya, temple priest, said: “Through sacred Pran Pratishtha, this mandir became a living spiritual presence. It cannot be treated merely as property. Losing it would break thousands of hearts.”

On its website, the Khadijah Mosque and Islamic Centre on Cromwell Road, a branch of the UK Islamic Mission (UKIM), says it has outgrown its premises and is fundraising for a new mosque. A spokesperson told TOI: “We can confirm UKIM Peterborough has been selected as the preferred bidder through the council’s competitive process for the New England Complex. As there are ongoing legal proceedings, it would not be appropriate for us to comment on the details at this stage. Our focus remains on acting responsibly, supporting community cohesion, and working constructively with the council and all affected parties.”

Peterborough currently has two gurdwaras, nine mosques, 84 churches and one Hindu temple.

The Hindu Council UK compared the threat of closure to “the very long and sad episode of Ram Mandir Ayodhya 500 years ago”.

“For any faith community, autonomy over its consecrated place of worship is fundamental,” the BHS trustees said in a statement. “It is about justice, faith, and the right of a long-standing community to exist without fear of erasure.”