A debate on BJP prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi's controversial past sparked a row at a meeting within Britain's parliament complex.

Human rights groups and organisers of 'Narendra Modi and the Rise of Hindu Fascism' at a committee room in the Parliament building yesterday claimed they had been subjectedto intense pressure and death threats from Hindu right-wing groups in the UK to cancel the debate.

"This meeting has been held under extremely difficult conditions, in the face of death threats. It just highlights the inability of Narendra Modi's supporters to tolerate anything other than their narrative and attempts to suppress free speech," said Chetan Bhatt, director of the Centre for the Study of Human Rights at the London School of Economics.

Bhatt traced Modi's RSS roots during the meeting leading up to his role as chief minister of Gujarat during the 2002riots.

"The human rights issues are very serious and are not going to go away, no matter what happens in the Indian elections," he added.