Our Bureau
Ottawa
In the recently concluded elections in Canada, 22 Punjabis have been elected to the Canadian Parliament, showcasing their growing influence in Canadian politics. With this kind of encouraging results, the Punjabi diaspora in Canada seems to have benefited by actively participating in the political process.
The Liberal’s Innovation, Science, and Industry Minister Anita Anand, who easily won the Oakville East seat, is anticipated to hold a key role in Prime Minister Mark Carney’s upcoming Cabinet. After initially withdrawing from the race, Anand was persuaded to run.
Tim Uppal, a conservative candidate, managed to hold onto his Edmonton Gateway seat. Uppal is the first Sikh with a turban to be nominated to the Canadian Cabinet and a former Federal Minister under Prime Minister Stephen Harper. Previously, he lost in Edmonton Mill Woods in 2015 but recaptured it in 2019, 2021 and again in 2025. Since 2021, he has also been the Conservative Party’s deputy leader. He was a radio show host and banker before entering politics.
In the French-speaking province of Quebec, lawyer Anju Dhillon became the first Indo-Canadian to win a seat three times. In addition, she holds certification as a mediator in employment, business, and civil law. Following her election as a Member of Parliament in 2015, she served in a number of committees and ministries and was appointed Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Status of Women.
Bardish Chagger, a former minister, won her seat in Waterloo for the fourth time. She won first in 2015, then in 2019, 2021, and presently.
The Liberal party’s Sukh Dhaliwal has won Surrey-Newton for the fifth time in a row. From 2006 to 2011, he represented Newton-North Delta as a member of parliament.
The Surrey Centre seat has gone to Randeep Sarai for the fourth time. He said, “It’s pretty exciting, getting a fourth mandate from Surrey Centre. I feel much honoured that the residents of Surrey elected me again.”
According to Sarai, addressing the concerns raised by the riding’s residents regarding US tariffs and affordability will be his first course of action.
Entrepreneur and philanthropist Maninder Sidhu, 41, has won for the third time from Brampton East on the Liberal party ticket starting in the year 2019, 2021, and 2025. Sidhu has been a member of the Standing Committee on Transportation, Infrastructure, and Communities as well as the Standing Committee on Natural Resources.
For the fourth time, Sonia Sidhu, who has been the representative for Brampton South since 2015, has been successful in holding onto her seat. She spent more than eighteen years working as a diabetic educator and research coordinator in the healthcare industry before entering politics.
Ruby Sahota, a member of the Liberal party, has also been elected to the Brampton North seat for the fourth time. She is representing the seat since 2015. Her father was the Chairman of the Ontario Sikhs and Gurdwara Council.
Iqwinder Singh Gaheer has won Mississauga — Malton for the second time. Gaheer attended Harvard Law School from 2016 to 2019, and served as Co-Editor-in-Chief of the Harvard Human Rights Journal.
Originally elected to Parliament in 2021, Parm Bains, a former media and public relations officer and Kwantlen Polytechnic University instructor, has managed to hold onto his seat from Steveston-Richmond East.
In the Calgary Mcknight seat, incumbent Liberal MP George Chahal was defeated by Conservative challenger Dalwinder Gill. Gill has 21 years of experience in the Canadian real estate industry.
Former Gurdwara Dasmesh Culture Centre Calgary president Amanpreet Singh Gill of Moga has been elected as a member of parliament for the first time from the Calgary Skyview constituency.
Businessman Amarjeet Gill, a Conservative candidate from Brampton West, upset incumbent Kamal Khera.
Gurbax Saini, a seven-time Williams Lake municipal councilor, won the Fleetwood-Port Kells seat for the first time. He had only $8 when he left Punjab in 1970.
The Conservative Parm Gill won the Milton East seat. He formerly served as an MLA in the Ontario Assembly, representing Brampton-Springdale from 2011 until 2015. However, he lost in federal polls in 2015. He later won the Milton seat in the 2018 Assembly elections, and he was appointed Minister in the Provincial Assembly in 2021.
In a surprise, retired police officer Harb Gill, a Conservative candidate, beat Windsor West’s longtime NDP incumbent Brian Masse.
The Conservative candidate Arpan Khanna, who is a lawyer by trade, has managed to hold onto his seat in Oxford.
Jasraj Singh Hallan, a former builder, became a major Conservative voice after entering Parliament in 2019. He was elected to a second term from Calgary East and was able to hold onto his seat.
Sukhman Gill, a 25-year-old Conservative candidate from Punjab’s Moga district, won the Abbotsford-South Langley seat.
Conservative candidate and a lawyer by trade, Jagsharan Singh Mahal, has defeated the sitting Edmonton Mayor and seasoned leader Amarjeet Sohi from Edmonton Southwest.
The youngest Member of Parliament in Canada this term is 23-year-old Amandeep Sodhi, a Liberal candidate who won from Brampton Centre. She was currently employed at a family law office as a legal assistant.
