United Kingdom Prime Minister Rishi Sunak on Monday morning gave Home Secretary Suella Braverman a belated Diwali gift: her marching orders out of his cabinet.
Braverman has come under fire for controversial comments in recent weeks, primarily against pro-Palestine protests, which have drawn massive crowds across the UK, with the largest drawing close to half a million and occupied the London Bridge.
While many of her views were intrinsically echoed by PM Sunak, what seems to have broken the camel's back has been her criticism of the Metropolitan Police's handling of the protests and refusal to ban a protest on November 11, which is observed as Remembrance Day to mark the end of hostilities at the end of World War I and martyrs in these wars.
Key among these actions which seem to have angered her Conservative Party was an article she wrote in a local paper The Times, where she described pro-Palestinian protesters as a "mob" and the demonstrations' hate marches'.
However, as the article caused ripples over her views of demonstrators, it emerged that the article contained language which had not been approved by the prime minister's office - which had suggested changes but did not make it in the published version.
More than that, what upset the political apple cart was how she targeted the police for criticism and its handling of such protests.
She suggested that the police "play favourites" when it comes to protest rallies and accused them of taking a soft stance towards rallies in support of Gaza.
The opposition Labour Party pointed towards Braverman's cavalier attitude as an example of the weak government run by Sunak, with some leaders suggesting that the ambitious politician, who, like Sunak, has Indian roots, was "out of control".
Conservative party members suggested her comments are divisive and undermine the police.
London Mayor Sadiq Khan, who is of Pakistani descent, had deemed her comments as "inaccurate, inflammatory and irresponsible", adding that she was doing more to divide than to unite communities.
Unfortunately, it failed to have any effect on her and she doubled down with her latest tweets reading:
"Week by week, the streets of London are being polluted by hate, violence, and antisemitism. Members of the public are being mobbed and intimidated. Jewish people, in particular, feel threatened. Further action is necessary."
This can’t go on. Week by week, the streets of London are being polluted by hate, violence, and antisemitism. Members of the public are being mobbed and intimidated. Jewish people in particular feel threatened. Further action is necessary. 3/3
— Suella Braverman MP (@SuellaBraverman) November 12, 2023
Braverman's penchant to excite controversy is a long-running feature of her politics.
As part of the government's row over pro-Palestine marches, she had compared it to the struggle of Northern Ireland.
"I do not believe that these marches are merely a cry for help for Gaza," Braverman wrote in The Times. "They are an assertion of primacy by certain groups – particularly Islamists – of the kind we are more used to seeing in Northern Ireland."
Elsewhere, she drew criticism for wanting to stop the use of tents by the homeless after dubbing their situation a lifestyle choice.
The British people are compassionate. We will always support those who are genuinely homeless. But we cannot allow our streets to be taken over by rows of tents occupied by people, many of them from abroad, living on the streets as a lifestyle choice. 1/4 https://t.co/fT1Ou5kD5Q
— Suella Braverman MP (@SuellaBraverman) November 4, 2023
A staunch Brexit advocate, she has even suggested sending asylum seekers and undocumented migrants -- whose arrival she chose to describe as an "invasion" -- to Rwanda.
Having been appointed in October 2022 as the home secretary, after she had served in the same position under former UK Prime Minister Liz Truss, who lasted mere weeks in the job, she even ruffled Pakistani feathers by suggesting that Pakistani men work abuse rings that target "vulnerable white English girls" and hold "cultural values at odds with British values".
Meanwhile, speculation is rife on who could replace her. British Foreign Secretary James Cleverly is tipped to take up her position while former UK prime minister David Cameron could make a return to government as the new foreign secretary.