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8 Indo-Canadians Elected MP's in Federal Elections Canada

 

8 Indo-Canadians Elected MP's in Federal Elections Canada

Toronto, May 04, 2011: On the evening of May 2, 2011, Conservative Party, under the leadership of Stephan Harper, had won more than enough seats – 167 of the 308 in Parliament – to form a strong majority.  The marijuana-hating Conservative Party has promised to pass all of his party's dangerous law - that would enact mandatory minimum prison sentences for non-violent marijuana offences,like growing just a few plants in your own home or sharing baked cannabis treats. Elections Canada reports only 61.4% of eligible voters made it to the polls. That's up from last year's 58.8% but still a paltry number when compared to other elections in Canadian history.

The winners are:

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1.  Parm Gill, Conservative

2.  Bal Gosal, Conservative

3.  Nina Grewal, Conservative-- MP Nina Grewal rode the wave to a Tory majority victory, winning her fourth straight term. At Now press time with 215 of 245 polls reporting, Grewal, MP for Fleetwood-Port Kells, had 21,032 votes, far ahead of her nearest rival NDP candidate Nao Fernando with 14,770 votes. Liberal contender Pam Dhanoa trailed with 6,894 votes

4.   Tim Uppal, Conservative

5.   Deepak Obhrai, Conservative

6.   Devinder Shorey, Conservative

7.   Jasbir Sandhu, NDP

8.    Jinny Sims, NDP


Among prominent Indo-Canadians who lost were:

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1.Ujjal Dosanjh,---Former Federal Health Minister and first Indo-Canadian Premier of British Columbia

2.   Ruby Dhalla, 

3.   Gurbax Malhi, 

4.   Navdeep Bains

5.    Sukh Dhaliwal. Conservative Bal Gosal won the riding of Bramalea-Gore Malton after a very tight race. “I want to put Brampton on the map in Ottawa

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 Top Indo-Canadian MPs lost in Canadian elections

Toronto, May 4, 2011:  Top Indo-Canadian MPs, including Ujjal Dosanjh, Ruby Dhalla, Gurbax Malhi, Navdeep Bains and Sukh Dhaliwal, lost in Monday's parliamentary elections which returned the ruling Conservative Party to power with 167 seats in the 308-member House of Commons.

IThe All these defeated Indo-Canadian MPs represented the opposition Liberal Party, which was reduced to just 34 seats - a historic low for Canada's 'natural governing party', whose leader Michael Ignatieff lost his own seat in Toronto.

Former Canadian health minister Dosanjh, who won by about 20 votes in 2008, lost by over 1,000 votes this time to his old rival Wai Young of the ruling party in Vancouver South.

Ruby Dhalla, who in 2004 became the first Sikh woman MP in Canada, lost to fellow Indo-Canadian Parm Gill of the ruling party in Brampton-Springdale on the outskirts of Toronto.

Thirty-seven-year-old Dhalla, who had squeezed through by a margin of just 700 votes in 2008, was hammered by more than 7,000 votes this time.

Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper and Immigration Minister Jason Kenney had made it their mission to wrest this seat from Dhalla, with the prime minister visiting the constituency four times and even roping in Bollywood star Akshay Kumar for campaigning.

Three-time Sikh MP Navdeep Bains, who had held the Mississauga-Brampton South seat since 2004, was also routed this time.

Six-time MP Gurbax Malhi, who created history by becoming the first turbaned Sikh MP in Canada in 1993, lost by just 500 votes to fellow Indo-Canadian Bal Gosal of the ruling party in Bramalea-Gore-Malton here.

Former Canada-India Business Council (CIBC) president Sarkar Rana came a poor third in the Toronto suburb of Scarborough Rouge.

Sitting MP Sukh Dhaliwal was also beaten by Jinny Sims (Joginder Kaur) of the New Democratic Party (NDP) in Newton-North Delta on the suburbs of Vancouver. Sims becomes the first Indo-Canadian MP for the NDP.

And the NDP got another Indo-Canadian MP when its candidate Jasbir Sandhu beat Shinder Purewal of the Liberal Party in the Vancouver suburb of Surrey North.

But from the ruling Conservative Party, all sitting Indo-Canadian MPs - Deepak Obhrai (Calgary East), Devinder Shory (Calgary Northeast), Tim Uppal (Edmonton-Sherwood) and Nina Grewal (Fleetwood-Port Kells) - retained their seats.

Twenty-three Indo-Canadian candidates were in the fray this time. But the 41st parliament will have eight Indo-Canadian MPs against nine in the outgoing House.

Canada also made history Monday when the Left-leaning NDP became the official opposition party for the first time by winning 102 seats, replacing the Liberal Party.

More importantly, Canada's French-speaking Quebec province rejected separatist Bloc Quebecois party and instead voted for the nationalist NDP for the first time.

In fact, Bloc Quebecois was reduced to just four seats from 48 last time, with its leader Gilles Duceppe losing his own seat.

The Green Party also made its entry into parliament with its leader Elizabeth May winning her seat. Canadian Foreign Minister Lawrence Cannon was among those who lost Monday

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It's Punjabi versus Punjabi in Canadian polls

Toronto, April 28, 2011: It is Punjabi versus Punjabi in many constituencies in Canada which is headed for parliamentary elections May 2.

Three major parties - the ruling Conservative Party, and two opposition Liberal Party and the New Democratic Party - have fielded 23 Indian-origin candidates to woo the million-strong Indo-Canadian community.

But barring Bengali-origin candidate Rana Sarkar, all Indian-origin candidates are Punjabi, including former federal health minister Ujjal Dosanjh, current parliamentary secretary Deepak Obhrai and the glamorous Ruby Dhalla.

Not surprisingly, it is all-Punjabi affair in some constituencies.

In Bramalea-Gore-Malton on the suburbs of Toronto, the longest-serving Indian-origin MP Gurbax Malhi of the Liberal Party is locked in a triangular race with fellow Punjabi Bal Gosal of the ruling Conservative Party and Jagmeet Singh Dhaliwal of the left-leaning New Democratic Party (NDP).

Malhi, the western world's first Sikh MP when he was elected first from this constituency in 1993, is seeking to retain the seat for the seventh time.

In the Newton-North Delta constituency on the outskirts of Vancouver, two Sikh women - Mani Kaur-Fallon of the ruling party and Jinny Sims (Joginder Kaur) of the NDP - are pitted against sitting MP Sukh Dhaliwal of the Liberal Party.

Punjab-born Dhaliwal, who tabled a motion in the Canadian parliament last year to recognize the 1984 anti-Sikh riots as an act of genocide, faces the prospect of being unseated by the fiery Jinny Sims who has been a teachers' union president.

In another Vancouver suburb constituency of Fleetwood-Port Kells, it is a battle between two Sikh women - sitting MP Nina Grewal of the ruling Conservative party and Pam Dhanoa of the Liberal Party.

However, it is the Brampton-Springdale constituency in the Toronto area which is making the headlines here as sitting Sikh woman MP Ruby Dhalla is fighting for her political survival against Parm Gill of the ruling Conservative party.

Voted as one of the sexiest women politicians in the world by Maxim magazine, the 37-year-old Dhalla hit national headlines in 2009 in what was termed Canada's 'nannygate' where her two former caretakers alleged exploitation at the MP's home.

A former beauty queen, Dhalla is a three-time MP........NRIpress.com///IANS

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