British-Indian businessman and politician Rami Ranger and chartered accountant Anil Bhanot have had their honours revoked by King Charles III.

Ranger, a Tory leader and House of the Lord member, was honoured with UK’s highest order known as Commander of the British Empire (CBE) in December 2015.

Bhanot, a Hindu Council UK managing trustee, was awarded Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in June 2010.

Now, Ranger has been stripped of his honour for “bringing the honours system into disrepute”, while Bhanot had his honour “cancelled and annulled” by the King – the move termed by both as an attack on free speech.

They would have to return their insignia to Buckingham Palace and cannot henceforth reference their honours. A review by the Forfeiture Committee pointed to certain actions by the “honour holders” as “tarnishing the reputation of the honours system”. When the committee’s recommendations were conveyed by UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer to King Charles III, the latter ordered the revocation.

Ranger had been under the scanner for sometime, for breaching the parliamentary Code of Conduct relating to “bullying and harassment”, according to the committee. Bhanot’s tweets in 2021 over violence against Hindus in Bangladesh have been strongly viewed by the committee, despite him denying any Islamophobic intent. – editor@nrifocus.com