Mayor of Bath quits role over ‘abhorrent’ Golders Green social media posts

Politics
1 Apr 2026 • 11:00 PM MYT
The Independent
The Independent

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  • Dr Bharat Pankhania has resigned as the Mayor of Bath following social media posts he shared regarding the Golders Green arson attack.
  • The posts suggested the incident, which involved four Jewish community ambulances being set alight on 23 March, was a fraud.
  • The attack is currently being investigated as an antisemitic hate crime.
  • Dr Pankhania apologised for the posts, describing them as 'abhorrent', and was suspended by the Liberal Democrat group before his resignation was accepted.
  • Police have arrested three more individuals in connection with the Golders Green arson attack, bringing the total number of arrests to five.

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