Ramesh Singh Arora sworn in as Punjab’s first Sikh minister

LAHORE: History was made for the second time in 10 days as, after electing the first-ever woman chief minister, Punjab also witnessed the oath-taking ceremony of its first Sikh minister on Wednesday.

Ramesh Singh Arora, the PMLN legislator who returned to the provincial assembly for the third term in 2024, became the first provincial minister of post-partition Punjab to take oath as a member of Maryam Nawaz Sharif’s cabinet.

Hailing from the district of Narowal, Ramesh Singh Arora has been allotted the portfolio of minorities. Another member representing the minority community of Punjab, Khalil Tahir Sindhu, has also been inducted into the Punjab cabinet and has been assigned the portfolio of human rights. Sardar Ramesh Singh Arora was also the first-ever Sikh MPA of Punjab, taking oath as an MPA in 2013.

Since 1970, various political parties or alliances, such as the PPP, IJI, PMLN, PMLQ, and PTI, have formed governments. However, the PMLN stands out as the only party to bring the first Sikh MPA to the house and include him in the cabinet. The PTI had also introduced a Sikh MPA to the Punjab Assembly in the form of Mahendra Pal Singh, but he could not return to the PA in 2024 as the party was unable to secure its quota of reserved seats.

The current Punjab cabinet appears to be a blend of new and old faces, with figures like Bilal Akhbar Khan, Rana Sikandar, Zeeshan Rafique, and Kazim Pirzada taking oath as ministers for the first time, although most of them have served as MPA for at least two or more terms. Maryam Aurangzeb and Suhail Shaukat Butt are also experienced members, having served as MNAs in the past. Azma Bokhari, who has taken oath as an MPA for the fifth time in 2024, has been assigned the task of overseeing the Information Ministry of Punjab.