Labour councillors and a variety of Muslim organisations are demanding that a conservative councillor resigns following a report of Islamophobic comments.

The Times recently published an article on Sunday (September 20) following an employment tribunal which concluded Conservative Harrow Cllr Kamaljit Chana, who represents Pinner South, called Muslims “violent” and having “no place in our society”.

Cllr Chana, who was also a Dyson senior technical project manager, was accused of Islamaphobia by engineer Zeinab Alipourbabaie.

Ms Alipourbabaie, 39, from Wiltshire resigned in 2018 after months of harassment and discrimination by the councillor.

The Bristol employment tribunal found that in a one-to-one meeting in 2017, Chana said “Pakastani men are grooming our girls” and called Muslims “violent”.

During this time, he also mentioned 9/11 and terrorism in general.

Read more: Councillor accused of Islamophobia hopes an appeal will be made

The court found that Ms Alipourbabaie was also excluded from meetings and emails, and Cllr Chana advised against promoting her.

Dyson's Automative Function closed over a year ago and Dyson’s promotion process and internal HR processes were not found to be discriminatory by the court.

Dyson says that their internal disciplinary procedure upheld the discrinatory allegations made, except for the allegation of the anti-muslim conversations.

A year later, the Islamaphobia was brought up to HR and serious disciplinary sanction, short of dismissal, was issued to Kamaljit Chana at the time in relation to bullying.

Harrow itself represents nearly 30,000 Muslims.

Following the release of the article, Leader of Harrow Council, Cllr Graham Henson, said: “As a resident of Harrow, and Leader of one of the most diverse Boroughs in London I was utterly appalled to read the article highlighting the disgusting Islamophobic comments made by a Harrow Conservative Councillor, Kamaljit Chana.

“I and the entire Labour Group believe that Islamophobia or any other form of discrimination has no place in Harrow.

“We have raised these press articles with the council’s legal officer who will investigate as part of the councillor standards and complaints procedure.

“ Unfortunately, as part of the Localism Act 2011, the Government limited the sanctions local authorities could impose on Councillors who breached their Codes of Conduct and it is only the Conservative Party in Harrow that can impose any effective sanctions and we call upon them to do so.

“We will not tolerate any form of discrimination; we will continue to challenge racism, discrimination and inequality. We call upon the Conservatives to act swiftly and thoroughly to ensure there is no room for discrimination in Harrow.”

Muslim organisations including Harrow Central Mosque, the Harrow Association of Somali Voluntary Organisations and the Kuwati Community Association, have united to share their outrage in the report.

In a united letter by the Muslim Forum of Middlesex, the letter called for the removal of Cllr Kamaljit Chana.

The letter read: “At a time when Islamophobia is increasing at an extraordinary pace, we are concerned that the Conservative Party in Harrow is not adopting a zero-tolerance approach. This is unacceptable.

“We are all the more disappointed that despite the matter being brought to the attention of the party, with the incident also nationally reported in the Sunday Times, the Conservative Party has dragged its heels.

“The Muslim community of Harrow will not stand for apathy in the face of Islamophobia.”

It continued: “This conduct is all the more worrisome given that Harrow is one of the most diverse boroughs in the country, which should be celebrated.

“We expect you will take immediate action to remove this individual from his post, whilst redoubling your efforts to ensure that each and every single individual within the Council serves with the respect and tolerance Muslim residents of Harrow expect from their elected officials.”

The letter also cites previous accusations of Islamophobia from Conservative Harrow East MP Bob Blackman and tweets from Cllr Anjana Patel which discussed “barbaric acts” of Islamists.

A Dyson spokesperson said: “Dyson demands a workplace free of discrimination, intimidation and harassment; we do not tolerate any form of unacceptable behaviour and we treat any such allegations very seriously.

"These allegations were investigated fully and disciplinary action was taken against Kamaljit Chana who was found to have acted inappropriately and no longer works for Dyson.

"We have since launched mandatory 'Respect at Dyson' training for all our people globally. Dyson notes that the tribunal found most claims were not well founded and were dismissed, especially in relation to promotion and HR processes which were not found to be discriminatory.”