By Asia Samachar | Malaysia |
Lawyer and lawmaker Niki Sharma has been appointed as the deputy premier of Niki Sharma after the New Democratic Party (NDP) managed to form the provincial government. She will also continue as the Attorney General for BC.
Premier David Eby unveiled yesterday the new cabinet consisting of 23 ministers and four ministers of state, and supported by 14 parliamentary secretaries.
The new provincial cabinet reflects the diversity and strengths of HC, with more women than men in cabinet, according to the official statement.
A record 14 winners can trace their roots to Panjab, up from nine in the previous assembly.
The NDP won 46 seats out fo the 93 seats up for grabs, one short for a simple majority. The Conservatives won 45 and the Green Party won two.
Among NDPs representatives with origins in the Indian sub-contionent to be re-elected were Harwinder Sandhu (Vernon-Lumby), Jagrup Brar (Surrey-Fleetwood), Niki Sharma (Vancouver-Hastings), Raj Chouhan (Burnaby-New Westminister), Ravi Kahlon (reelected Delta North), Ravi Parmar (Langford-Highlands).
The newly elected included Jessi Sunner (Surrey-Newton), Reah Arora (Burnaby-East) and Sunita Dhir (Vancourver-Langara).
Three of them were made minksters: Ravi Parmar (Forests), Ravi Kahlon (Housing and Municipal Affairs) and Jagrup Brar (Mining and Critical Minerals). Raj Chauhan is expected to continue as Speaker of the BC provincial legislature.
For parliamentary secretaries, BC now has Jessie Sunner as Parliamentary Secretary for Anti-Racism, Harwinder Sandhu (Agriculture) and Sunita Dhir (International Credentials).
NIKI SHARMA
Niki Sharma made history as the first South Asian woman to serve as the province’s top lawyer when she was appointed as BC’s Attorney General in 2022.
She was first elected to represent Vancouver-Hastings in 2020 and was later served as the parliamentary secretary for community development and non-profits.
Niki was called to the bar in 2005 after completing law school at the University of Alberta.
Her parents, Rose and Pal Sharma, immigrated from the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh in the 1970s to build a new life in B.C.’s Elk Valley. Sharma’s mom raised four daughters in the small community of Sparwood; her dad worked at a local coal mine for several years.
It’s been a remarkable rise for Sharma, who attended the University of Alberta law school before moving to Vancouver nearly two decades ago. She spent 12 years at the Donovan & Company law firm, often representing Indigenous clients. In 2011, she became the first woman of South Asian ancestry ever elected to the Vancouver park board, according to a 2023 report in Pancouver.
BC got its first Asian leader when it elected Ujjal Dev Dosanjh as the 33rd premier of BC from 2000 to 2001. Dosanjh, a Canadian lawyer from the Liberal Party of Canada, has been known to make disparaging remarks on the Sikhs.
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