# Khan mocks Green leader's Urdu campaign video

> London mayor responds in Urdu to byelection candidate, sparking debate over multilingual campaigning.
- Title: Khan mocks Green leader's Urdu campaign video · the Guardian
- Summary: London mayor responds in Urdu to byelection candidate, sparking debate over multilingual campaigning. Polanski's Urdu campaign video backfired when Khan…
- Keywords: sadiq khan, zack polanski, green party, london assembly, holborn and st pancras, byelection, urdu, campaign video, multilingual campaigning, news, world, Khan
- Source: the Guardian — https://theguardian.com/politics/live/2026/sep/17/conservatives-badenoch-griffiths-healey-burnham-tax-rises-budget-economy-bank-of-england-latest-uk-politics-news-updates
- Published: 2026-09-17T15:45:45+00:00
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: sadiq khan, zack polanski, green party, london assembly, holborn and st pancras, byelection, urdu, campaign video, multilingual campaigning, news, world
## Green leader campaigns in Urdu
Zack Polanski, the Green Party candidate for Holborn and St Pancras, released a campaign video in Urdu. The move drew criticism from Labour and even some within government.
## Tories and Labour condemn the video
Katie Lam, Labour's shadow communities secretary, called the video poisonous and said Tories would ban foreign-language campaigning. Even business secretary Jonathan Reynolds said it made him uncomfortable.
## Khan responds in Urdu at assembly
When Polanski asked Khan a question about data centres at the London assembly, Khan replied in Urdu for his first few sentences. Polanski appeared not to understand and seemed unamused.
## Khan's Urdu message translated
Khan's office later revealed he said: Peace be upon you. I was worried you would ask in Urdu, but you asked in English. I'll be in Holborn and St Pancras this week.

> Peace be upon you. I was worried that you would ask the question in Urdu, but you asked your question in English.
## Urdu speakers are rare in the area
Data shows only 139 people in Holborn and St Pancras speak Urdu as their main language, and 114 of them speak English well. The constituency has far more Bengali speakers who struggle with English.
## Polanski's strategy questioned
Political analysts suggest Polanski may have copied a successful strategy from other constituencies without checking if it applied to Holborn and St Pancras. The video appeared pointless given the area's actual language demographics.
## Key takeaway

Polanski's Urdu campaign video backfired when Khan mocked it at the assembly, though data shows the language choice made little sense for the constituency.