Wednesday, June 17, 2026
ADVT 
National

Punjabi Now Third Language In Canada's House Of Commons

Darpan News Desk IANS, 02 Nov, 2015 11:12 AM
    In total, 23 MPs of Indian-origin were elected after October 19 general elections. Three of the 23 MPs do not speak Punjabi, Hill Times online reported on Monday.
     
    Prime Minister-designate Justin Trudeau, who won from Papineau, Quebec constituency, will unveil his cabinet later this week. Some of Punjabi-speaking MPs are expected to be included in the Cabinet.
     
    Meanwhile, Navdeep Bains of Liberal Party said that the elected 20 Punjabi-speaking MPs represent all constituents regardless of their party affiliation or ethnic origin.
     
    "It speaks to our commitment to diversity and allowing individual to play an important role in our political institutions," Bains said.
     
     
    "The main issue to understand is that we have a very clear mandate to execute our platform and we also have a responsibility to represent our constituents, which are very diverse," he added.
     
    "The voice of the Indo-Canadian community will now be very well represented in the parliament. In the overall aspect of it, the South Asian community won," Deepak Obhrai of Conservative Party was quoted as saying.
     
    According to Statistics Canada's 2011 National Household Survey, 430,705 Canadians identified Punjabi as their mother tongue, making it the third most common language after English and French, the report in the daily said.
     
    The 430,705 native Punjabi speakers make up about 1.3 percent of Canada's population and the 20 Punjabi-speaking MPs represent almost six percent of the House of Commons, the report added.

    MORE National ARTICLES

    Grizzly Bear Attack Survivors Thank B.C. Rescuers With Fundraiser

    Grizzly Bear Attack Survivors Thank B.C. Rescuers With Fundraiser
     A pair of British Columbia hunters recovering from a grizzly bear attack are taking extra steps to make sure their rescuers know just how thankful they are.

    Grizzly Bear Attack Survivors Thank B.C. Rescuers With Fundraiser

    RCMP Honours Fallen Officers, Including One Who Died From Tick Bite In 1968

    RCMP Honours Fallen Officers, Including One Who Died From Tick Bite In 1968
    The annual RCMP National Memorial Service has added two new names to a cenotaph in Regina that honours Mounties who died in the line of duty.

    RCMP Honours Fallen Officers, Including One Who Died From Tick Bite In 1968

    Calgary Bus Driver Jesse Rau Says He Wasn't Alone In His Opposition To Pride Bus

    Calgary Bus Driver Jesse Rau Says He Wasn't Alone In His Opposition To Pride Bus
    A transit driver who's been fired amid a controversy over Calgary's Pride bus says he wasn't alone in his reluctance to take the wheel of the rainbow-wrapped vehicle.

    Calgary Bus Driver Jesse Rau Says He Wasn't Alone In His Opposition To Pride Bus

    Hearing Delayed For High-Risk Designation Of Mentally Ill Dad Allan Schoenborn Who Killed 3 Kids

    Hearing Delayed For High-Risk Designation Of Mentally Ill Dad Allan Schoenborn Who Killed 3 Kids
    The province's Criminal Justice Branch announced last week it was initiating an application for the "high-risk" label for Schoenborn.

    Hearing Delayed For High-Risk Designation Of Mentally Ill Dad Allan Schoenborn Who Killed 3 Kids

    Quebec Will Send 5,000 Camp Beds And Blankets For Syrian Refugees In Germany

    Quebec Will Send 5,000 Camp Beds And Blankets For Syrian Refugees In Germany
    Public Security Minister Lise Theriault says the Red Cross requested the beds, which are left over from the ice storm that hit Eastern Canada in 1998.

    Quebec Will Send 5,000 Camp Beds And Blankets For Syrian Refugees In Germany

    No Choice, But Mai Eilia, Syrian Refugee, In Vancouver Considers Herself The 'Luckiest'

    No Choice, But Mai Eilia, Syrian Refugee, In Vancouver Considers Herself The 'Luckiest'
     Mai Eilia asks one question when she sends Facebook messages to friends in her war-ravaged homeland of Syria: "Are you still alive?"

    No Choice, But Mai Eilia, Syrian Refugee, In Vancouver Considers Herself The 'Luckiest'