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Victory for Religious Inclusion: 11 Sikhs Elected to House of Commons
On July 4, history was made in the United Kingdom: 11 members of Parliament from Sikh backgrounds emerged victorious in the election, marking the largest group ever from that faith to take their seats in the House of Commons.
Sikhs comprise .8% of the British population and are now represented by 1.7% of the House of Commons, an elected body of 650 members that forms the lower house of Parliament in the UK.
Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi, the first turbaned Sikh MP in UK history, was elected in 2017, with Preet Kaur Gill making history that same year as the first Sikh woman to be elected an MP.
Both have now been re-elected for their third terms.
“A proud moment for the entire Sikh community. 11 Sikh MPs have made it to the UK Parliament.”
Nine further Sikh MPs were newly elected on July 4: Jas Athwal, Kirith Entwistle, Gurinder Singh Josan, Warinder Juss, Satvir Kaur, Sonia Kumar, Dr. Jeevun Sandher, Baggy Shanker and Harpreet Uppal.
The election results were met with universal applause from the international Sikh community. “Sikhs across the world are largely delighted to see more Sikhs—especially dastaar [turban] wearing practicing Sikhs—in UK Parliament,” said Sikh Press Association Senior Press Officer Jasveer Singh.
Singh Dhesi and Kaur Gill “have helped amplify Sikh issues into UK Parliament,” he added. “The two have set a high standard for the others to follow.”
“A proud moment for the entire Sikh community. 11 Sikh MPs have made it to the UK Parliament… despite being victims of hate campaigns,” wrote Tracking Hate Against Sikhs. “This tremendous victory has bolstered the position of Sikhs in international politics.”
Sikhism, the world’s fifth largest religion, has a following of over 25 million people, with human rights, service and justice as key components of the faith.
As an organization working to build a world that is safe and inclusive for members of every faith, STAND congratulates each Sikh member of Parliament on their historic victories—victories which represent a triumph for religious inclusion across all faiths.
