Couple oppose ban on festival

Vinod and Vanita Patel have been banned from holding the festival

A Leicester couple are fighting back after complaints from neighbours led to a ban on them holding a Hindu religious celebration in their own home.

Devout Hindus Vinod and Vanita Patel hold a 10-day festival every August to mark the birth of the elephant-headed god Ganesh.

They import a five foot statue of the god from India and hundreds of worshippers come to pay their respects in a marquee in their garden.

Mr Patel said: "It is very, very important that we celebrate this birthday - Ganesh comes into the picture whether it is a wedding, business, or a funeral."

Complaints from neighbours

But Leicester City Council has put an enforcement order on the couple, banning them from holding the festival, after neighbours petitioned against it.

One man said: "It stops you getting a parking space in the street - in fact it blocked the street completely for some time with three buses parked outside here."

Another woman added: "It's noisy. There's people coming in and out all the time."

The Patels have now started their own petition - calling for the ceremony to go ahead, and so far they have collected more than 100 signatures.