Rupert Lowe, the member of parliament (MP) for Great Yarmouth, shared an image on his official X account of a bilingual sign at Whitechapel Station, which has sparked debate. The sign, written in both English and Bengali, has been criticized by some, including Lowe, who believes that signs at London stations should be in English alone.
In his post, Lowe, a reform UK MP, expressed his opinion that "This is London – the station name should be in English, and English only," which quickly went viral. Elon Musk, the billionaire owner of X, responded with a simple "Yes."
Lowe, who has been supportive of former U.S. President Donald Trump, recently called for Nigel Farage's removal as the leader of Reform UK, while also seemingly endorsing Lowe's views. Some users supported the MP's stance, while others argued that having signs in multiple languages was not an issue.
The Bengali signage was installed at Whitechapel Tube station in 2022 to honor the contributions of the Bangladeshi community in East London. The Tower Hamlets council funded the dual-language signs as part of broader station improvements. Whitechapel is home to the largest Bangladeshi community in the UK.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee praised the initiative, expressing pride that Bengali had been accepted as a language for signage at the station. She highlighted the global significance of the Bengali language, calling the move a "victory of our culture and heritage" and underscoring the importance of diaspora unity.
Source: UNB with inputs from agencies
Bd-pratidin English/Fariha Nowshin Chinika
