New Delhi: Two women of Indian origin, Anita Anand and Kamal Khera, secured positions in Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney’s cabinet Friday.
Khera, 36, and Anand, 58, are among the few ministers from former prime minister Justin Trudeau’s cabinet to retain ministerial roles, albeit in different portfolios.
Carney, a member of the Liberal Party, took the oath as Prime Minister in Ottawa, with Governor General Mary Simon overseeing the swearing-in of the 30th Canadian Ministry.
“Canada, here is your new cabinet,” Carney announced in a post on X, sharing a photograph of his team following the swearing-in ceremony.
Carney’s cabinet comprises 13 men and 11 women, making it a more compact team than Trudeau’s 37-member cabinet. The former central banker described it as a smaller, more focused, and experienced group, prepared to tackle the pressing challenges of the time.
Delhi-born Khera, one of the youngest members of the cabinet, has been appointed Minister of Health. First elected as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Brampton West in 2015, she moved to Canada during her school years and later obtained a Bachelor of Science degree from York University in Toronto.
According to the Prime Minister’s website, Khera is a registered nurse, community volunteer, and political activist, “deeply committed to improving the lives of those around her”.
Before entering politics, Khera worked as a registered nurse in the oncology department at St. Joseph’s Health Centre in Toronto. During the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, she returned to nursing in Brampton.
Her family relocated to Canada while she was still in school. She later pursued and earned a Bachelor of Science degree from York University, Toronto.
Previously, she served as Minister of Seniors and held positions as Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of International Development, the Minister of National Revenue, and the Minister of Health.
Born and raised in Nova Scotia, Anita Anand was widely regarded as a leading contender to succeed Justin Trudeau as Prime Minister following his resignation. However, in January, she announced her withdrawal from the race and stated that she would not seek re-election. On 1st March, she reversed her decision, citing the significance of the moment, saying, “Canada is facing a crucial moment in our nation’s history.”
The Indo-Canadian moved to Ontario in 1985 and built a distinguished career as a scholar, lawyer, and researcher. She served as a legal academic and professor of law at the University of Toronto, where she held the J.R. Kimber Chair in Investor Protection and Corporate Governance, according to the Prime Minister of Canada’s website.
Elected as the MP for Oakville in 2019, Anand has held several key positions in government, including President of the Treasury Board, Minister of National Defence, and Minister of Public Services and Procurement. The website also highlights her extensive academic contributions.
“I am honoured to be sworn in as the Minister of Innovation, Science, and Economic Development in @MarkJCarney’s Government. We know that negativity won’t pay the rent or the mortgage. Negativity won’t bring down the price of groceries. Negativity won’t win a trade war. We are united and strong, and we will immediately get to work to build the Canada and the Canadian economy of tomorrow,” Anand wrote on ‘X’.
Notably, Indian-origin ministers have held prominent positions in previous Canadian cabinets as well. Under Trudeau, in addition to Anita Anand, three other Indian-origin ministers—Harjit Sajjan, Navdeep Bains, and Bardish Chagger—were part of his cabinet.
Sajjan served as Minister of National Defence, Bains as Minister of Innovation, Science, and Industry, and Chagger as Minister of Diversity, Inclusion, and Youth. All three were first appointed before 2019 and continued in ministerial roles in Trudeau’s 2019 cabinet.
In 1997, Herb Dhaliwal became the first Indian-origin Canadian to join the federal cabinet when he was appointed Minister of National Revenue. He was first elected to the House of Commons in the 1993 election as the Liberal MP for Vancouver South. His cabinet appointment came on the recommendation of Prime Minister Jean Chrétien.
(Edited by Radifah Kabir)
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