At least 15 Britons of Pakistani and Kashmiri descent have been elected in Britain’s parliament following the elections this week.
Britain’s premier, Boris Johson, retained his premiership in the elections after his Conservative Party secured a whopping success over the Labour party.
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“Electing 15 Muslim MPs to the UK parliament as their representatives show how our community has worked hard to ensure the victory of their candidates,” said Raja Kiyani, the head of the UK chapter of Tehreek-e-Kashmir.
Adding that, “It is a great moment for the Pakistani and Kashmiri diaspora in the UK,” he added. “It is a matter of pride that six lawmakers out of 15 belong to Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK).”
Ten Pakistani MPs were elected from the Labour Party. The candidates are Naz Shah, Khalid Mahmoud from Bradford West, Yasmin Qureshi, Afzal Khan from South Bolton and Tahir Ali from Gordan Manchester.
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Others include Muhammad Yasin from Birmingham, Imran Hussain, Zara Sultan from Bradford East, Shabana Mehmood from Coventry Sout and Rosena Ali Khan from Birmingham.
Five British-Pakistanis were elected from the Conservative Party. Nusrat Ghani, Tooting, Imran Ahmed Khan, Sajid Javed from Wakefield, Reham Chishti and Saqib Bhatti.
This election witnessed an increase in the British-Pakistani candidate compared to polls in 2017. While 40 Pakistanis contested the elections in 2017, this time 70 Pakistani were given tickets to contest elections by Conservatives, Labour Party, and Liberal Democrat Parties.
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Currently, more than one million people of Pakistani descent are living in the UK. It is the second-largest overseas Pakistani population after Saudi Arabia. It is estimated that by 2021, there will be 2.31 million British-Pakistani residing in the UK.
Governor Punjab, Chaudhry Muhammad Sarwar has congratulated the elected British-Pakistanis. Adding that, his wishes for greater inclusion of Pakistanis and Muslims in the British parliament.
Chaudhry Sarwar asserted that he looks forward to improving Pak-British ties in trade, diplomacy, and cultural exchange.