The world is getting its first Sikh court in London. That’s a threat to women’s rights | Pragna Patel

With the UK judicial system cut to breaking point, conservative religious forces are moving into a space vacated by the state

• Pragna Patel is a founding member of Southall Black Sisters and Project Resist, an advocacy group for minority women

On 1 June 2024, the world's first Sikh court will open in London. This demands our urgent attention. For many years, I - as the co-director of Project Resist, and the former director of Southall Black Sisters - along with groups such as One Law for All have campaigned against the growth of religious courts because we believe they are tied to a wave of religious fundamentalism targeting the rights and freedoms of women.

In 2015, we organised against the establishment of sharia councils and the Muslim arbitration tribunal, which followed the model of Jewish Beth Din courts, because of the threat they posed to our secular legal system. Our concern was that other minority religions would insist their own legal rules and orders be similarly accommodated by the state. It has not taken long for our fear to become a reality.

Pragna Patel is a founding member of Southall Black Sisters and Project Resist, an advocacy and campaigning group for black and minority women