Senior Congress leader and former union minister Manish Tewari has lauded the vibrancy and energy of the Punjabi diaspora across the world, where it has made its mark in every sphere of life.He also congratulated the Indian and Punjabi origin parliamentarians who were recently elected in the general elections. He said, they had made every Indian feel proud.Speaking at a reception hosted in his honour by the Canadian chapter of the Indian Overseas Congress (IOC) organised by Amarpreet Aulakh, at Toronto on Monday, Tewari pointed out, the Punjabi’s of the Indian origin living in Canada not only had done well in their life, but had excelled in various walks of life particularly the politics.The former union minister also appreciated the interest and concern the NRIs have been showing in the events and developments back home. “I feel immensely happy and proud at the same time as I see our Punjabi faces spread across the political spectrum lending voice not only to their own brethren but the entire Canadian society”, he said, amidst lots of cheers and applause.
Tewari said, people back home were also looking up to the NRIs as they carried a lot of influence in Punjab. “The way you have kept your links alive with your roots makes you as important a part of that society as you are here”, he told the audience, adding, this bonding has had positive influence over the relationship between the two countries as well.Among those present on the occasion included Bob Saroy MP, Jack MacLaren MLA, Vic Dhillon MLA, Harinder Thakar MLA, Harinder Malhi, Bob Stanley, Gurdev Gill, Manjit Gill, Joe Daniel, Param Gill, Gurbax Malhi, Pawan Dewan, Jarnail Grewal, Gurdeep Jhaj, Rana Ahluwalia, Gurbax Bhatti, Sunny Shergill, Parminder Dhillon, Jasbir Bhatti, Ashok Bawa, Ranjodh Sidhu, Gurpreet Kala Gill, Happy Bains, Puneet Ludhiana, Gurwinder Thind, Sunny Bajwa, Jassi Ghawadi, Gurnek Tihara, Gursewa Dhillon, Sukhwinder Rataul, Inderjit Mangat, Amarinder Mangat and others.