| London, UK | 10 June 2017 | Asia Samachar |
Preet Kaur Gill made history for being the first Sikh female to be elected as a Member of Parliament at the recent British snap general elections, while Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi became the first turban-wearing Sikh MP.
Both the Labour candidates, who were among the dozen Indian-origin MPs won in the elections, were both born and raised in the constituencies where they won. There were more than 50 Indian-origin candidates from various parties in the fray.
In an interview immediately after the announcement, Preet told the media that it was a ‘real honour and privilege’ to represent the people in the area where she born and raised.
“My family lived here, I’m in the constituency. I’m really excited to learn more and really connect with communities,” she said.
Preet Gill secured 24,124 votes to hold the seat in Birmingham Edgbaston for Labour with a majority of 6,917. The seat had previously been held by Gisela Stuart who stepped down when the election was called.
Tanmanjeet won the Slough seat when he received 34,170 votes against 16,998 votes garnered by his Conservative party rival.
British Prime Minister Theresa May had called for the snap election in April in an attempt to extend her majority and strengthen her position in the post-Brexit era, but her gamble backfired spectacularly after her party failed to win enough seats to form a Conservative government.
Among former Sikh lawmakers included Paramjit Dhanda, Piara Singh Kabra and Paul Uppal.
Britain is home to between 600,000 and 800,000 Sikhs, with about 500,000 eligible to vote. Sikhs form part of a politically active community with an estimated two in three people voting in the 2010 general election, it adds.
[ASIA SAMACHAR is an online newspaper for Sikhs in Southeast Asia and surrounding countries. We have a Facebook page, do give it a LIKE. Follow us on Twitter. Visit our website: www.asiasamachar.com]
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