Modi’s team has fewer Sikhs than mine: Trudeau

Washington, March 13

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, known for his witty repartees, told an American audience here that he has more Sikhs in his Cabinet than his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi.

The quip came when Trudeau was taking 10 questions from students at the American University in northwest Washington during his state visit to the US.

During the half-hour session at the university on Friday, a student, Jahan, from the Punjab province of Pakistan told Trudeau that it was really great to see so many Punjabis in his cabinet.

“I have more Sikhs in my cabinet than Modi does,” Trudeau was quoted as saying by the Canadian daily The Star. Trudeau, 44, who assumed office in November last year, surprised one and all by including four Sikh Canadians in his Cabinet.

The four Sikh Canadians inducted into Trudeau’s Cabinet include Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan, a combat veteran who did three tours in Afghanistan as a member of the Canadian Armed Forces. The other three Sikh ministers are Infrastructure Minister Amarjeet Sohi, Small Business Minister Bardish Chagger and Innovation Minister Navdeep Singh Bains.

There were 17 Sikh MPs elected in the election in Canada in October last year — 16 from the Liberal Party of Canada and one Conservative — the highest number of Sikhs ever elected.

In contrast, there are two Sikh ministers in the Modi Cabinet — Maneka Gandhi, a Sikh by birth, and Harsimrat Kaur Badal, the Food Processing Minister. Trudeau, in the past, has been spotted doing bhangra moves and visiting gurdwaras several times. He has also participated in Diwali celebrations, apart from a Gurbani recital. He has even helped out women in preparing meals for langar. — PTI