Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has appointed Brampton East MP Maninder Sidhu, as the new Parliamentary Secretary to International Development Minister Karina Gould. Sidhu, 36, was first elected to the House of Commons from Brampton East in October 2019.
After the appointment, he tweeted that he was “happy and honored” to receive the award. Sidhu replaces Indo-Canadian MP Kamal Khera in the role. Originally from Punjab, Sidhu graduated from the University of Waterloo. He is married and has two daughters. Before entering politics, he used to run a custom brokerage business.
In addition to Sidhu, three other Canadians of Indian descent have been appointed to Trudeau’s cabinet. They include Defense Minister Harjit Sajjan, Public Service and Procurement Minister Anita Anand and Diversity, Inclusion and Youth Minister Bardish Chagger. In a post earlier this week, Trudeau said that Parliamentary Secretaries support ministers in delivering real, positive results for the people of Canada.
“I am confident that this team’s experience, honesty and skills will help them fight the global COVID-19 pandemic,” he said. In Trudeau’s cabinet, Indian-born Arifa Virani will remain as Parliamentary Secretary to the Attorney General and Minister of Justice.
