Leicester East’s Conservative prospective Parliamentary candidate Kishan Devani, pictured, said it is baffling Mr Vaz intends to present a petition about the Shree Sanatan Mandir Temple to the House of Commons.
Mr Vaz said he was contacted by worshippers at the Weymouth Street temple about poor parking and lighting. He said the petition was to put pressure on Leicester City Council to look at the issues.
However, Mr Devani said: “I don’t understand why he’s presenting the petition to Parliament. He should be petitioning the Labour councillors for that area. It is, of course, an issue but it’s a local one. It’s baffling.”
A council spokesman said the temple’s location in a residential area of terraced streets means parking spaces are limited, but the ward councillor has met with representatives of the temple to discuss concerns.
He said: “Some of their requests would require significant highway changes – which would need to be prioritised against demands for environmental works in other wards.”
Bollards will be installed outside the temple to prevent people from parking on the pavements and blocking the entrance, and the “keep clear” space in front of the entrance will be widened.
