The first Sikh to hold a cabinet position in Punjab after division is the powerful minority leader Sardar Ramesh Singh Arora, who was sworn in as a provincial minister. After winning the elections on February 8, Mr. Arora, a member of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) party led by former prime minister Nawaz Sharif.
After winning the election to lead the Pakistan Sikh Gurudwara Parbandhak Committee (PSGPC), Arora declared: “A Sikh has been inducted into the Punjab province Cabinet for the first time since Partition.” Not only will I strive for the security and welfare of Sikhs, but also for all other minorities residing in Pakistan, such as Christians and Hindus.
Sardar Ramesh Singh Arora: who is he?
Sardar Ramesh Singh Arora, a prominent Sikh leader, has been appointed as a provincial minister in post-partition Punjab. Arora, 49, has held positions such as Pardhan (president) of the Pakistan Gurdwara Parbhandhak Committee and ambassador to the Kartarpur Corridor. She has been allotted the portfolio of minorities in the cabinet of Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz, the first woman to hold the post in the country.
Arora has close connections with the military establishment and has studied at Government College, Lahore, Punjab University, Lahore, and Harvard Business School in the US. He has also served as a member of the National Commission for Minorities, chairman of the Standing Committee on Commerce & Investment, and Patron-in-chief of the Pakistan Sikh Council.
Arora gave an explanation of how his family came to live in the Punjab region of Pakistan. “A Sikh has been elected to the Punjab province’s Cabinet for the first time since Partition. He declared, “I would not only strive for the security and welfare of Sikhs in Pakistan, but also for all other minorities, such as Christians and Hindus.
He has been a devoted supporter of Sikh rights throughout the nation. Interestingly, he was named the Kartarpur Corridor’s “Ambassador at large.” Additionally, he was a major factor in Pakistan’s “Punjab Sikh Anand Karaj Marriage Act 2018” being passed.
Punjab province of Pakistan’s first Sikh minister?
Representing the minority in the provincial assembly, Sardar Ramesh Singh Arora, a three-term member of Pakistan’s Provincial Assembly (MPA), became the first Sikh to take an oath of office as a minister on Wednesday in the Punjab province.
The 48-year-old lawmaker from the Pakistani district of Narowal is Sardar Ramesh Singh Arora said, I pledge to strive for the security and welfare of all Pakistani minorities, including Christians and Hindus, as well as Sikhs.
However, Sardar Ramesh Singh Arora was re-elected as MPA from Narowal and appointed as Ambassador at Large for the Kartarpur Corridor.
Arora played a significant role in implementing the Sikh Marriage Registration Act 2017, which was passed by the Assembly in March 2018. He was also elected president of the Pakistan Sikh Gurdwara Prabandhak Committee (PSGPC) for a three-year term.
Additionally, Sardar Ramesh Singh Arora is the President of the Pakistan Sikh Gurdwara Prabandhak Committee (PSGPC), has been appointed as the ambassador to the Kartarpur Corridor. The Kartarpur Corridor connects Gurdwara Darbar Sahib in Pakistan to the Dera Baba Nanak shrine in India, facilitating visa-free visits for Indian Sikh pilgrims to one of their religion’s holiest sites in Pakistan. Arora’s appointment follows Sardar Ameer Singh’s resignation.
Oath-taking by Sardar Ramesh Singh
The minority Sikh community member from Pakistan, Ramesh Singh Arora, took the oath of office as a minister in the state of Punjab on Wednesday. Arora was sworn in as a minister in the Cabinet of Maryam Nawaf Sharif, the recently appointed Chief Minister of the Pakistan Muslim League (PML-N), who is the daughter of the late Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.
Arora served three terms as a member of the Provincial Assembly (MPA) representing Narowal.
The ceremony was held at the Governor’s House in Lahore. Maryam’s uncle, Shehbaz Sharif, took the oath of office as prime minister of Pakistan. “A Sikh has been inducted into the Punjab province Cabinet for the first time since Partition,” said Arora, who was just elected president of the Pakistan Sikh Gurudwara Parbandhak Committee (PSGPC).
“I pledge to strive for the security and welfare of all Pakistani minorities, including Christians and Hindus, as well as Sikhs.”
Arora was re-elected as an MPA from Narowal, his hometown, where Guru Nanak’s last resting place, Gurdwara Sri Kartarpur Sahib, is situated, in the most recent elections. He was also named the Kartarpur Corridor’s “Ambassador at large” last year.
