Piara Khabra
Encyclopedia
Piara Singh Khabra was a British politician
who served as the Labour
Member of Parliament
(MP) for Ealing Southall from 1992 until his death. He was the fifth Asian
, and the first Sikh
, to become a British
MP. From the retirement
of Sir Edward Heath
in 2001 until his death, Khabra was the oldest MP sitting in the House of Commons, and at the end of his career was the only sitting MP to have served in the forces
during the Second World War
.
farming family in the Punjab, then part of British India. Khabra gave his year of birth as 1924, but his marriage certificate
dated it as 1921. He attended Khalsa High School and Punjab University, but his education was interrupted by the Second World War, and he served in the Indian Army
between 1942 and 1946. He returned to university
after the war, earning a degree in social services.
He joined the Communist Party of India
, and became a teacher
in an elementary school
. Refused a visa
to emigrate to the US, he moved to the United Kingdom
in 1959 with his wife and baby. Lacking qualifications to teach in the UK, he worked in factories. He requalified in 1964, becoming an elementary teacher and then a social worker. He became a leading member of the Asian
community in Southall
, west London
. He also became the President of the Indian Workers' Association
, which assisted Indian immigrants to establish themselves and find jobs, and was active in opposition to the far right
.
He left the Communist Party of Great Britain
in the 1960s, and joined the Labour Party
in 1972. He became a Justice of the Peace
in 1977, and was elected as a member of Ealing Council
in 1978. He briefly joined the Social Democratic Party
in 1981, leaving two years later and returning to Labour in 1988.
at the 1992 election
, the fifth Asian
MP and inherited a large majority in the safe Labour seat of Ealing Southall, following Labour's de-selection of the long-serving sitting MP Sydney Bidwell. He claimed to have the largest caseload of immigration
and asylum cases of any MP. He maintained good attendance and voting records, but very rarely spoke in Parliament
. He said he was proud to speak on the report into the murder of Stephen Lawrence
, and on the Race Relations Amendment Act 2000.
Khabra was a strong supporter of people with autism
and Asperger syndrome
. He sponsored one of the most successful early day motion
s on autism in the 2002 Autism Awareness Year; it was supported by 153 parliamentarians
of all parties. Khabra backed the work of the Autism Awareness Campaign UK
.
How Khabra voted on key issues from 2001-2007:
, he suggested that Avtar Lit
, chairman of Sunrise Radio
and an independent
challenger for his seat, should be "sent back to India
".
In 2002, Khabra also claimed that the local Somali
population was behind a recent crime wave in Southall. Somali activists responded to these criticisms by suggesting that their community was being targeted by some Asians who were attempting to drive them out of the area. Ealing Police also indicated that they did not believe Somali youths were responsible for the string of street robberies in question.
Khabra died as a result of liver
problems on the night of 19 June 2007 at Hammersmith Hospital
, where he had been being treated for abscess
es on the liver since April. He customarily gave his year of birth as 1924; birth registration was not compulsory in the Punjab
until 1970 and so no birth certificate
exists, but on his marriage certificate
his year of birth was 1921. He was married twice. His first wife
died in 1978, and he remarried in 1990. He was survived by his second wife
, Beulah Marian, and a son from his first marriage.
Politics of the United Kingdom
The politics of the United Kingdom takes place within the framework of a constitutional monarchy, in which the Monarch is the head of state and the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom is the head of government...
who served as the Labour
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
(MP) for Ealing Southall from 1992 until his death. He was the fifth Asian
British Asian
British Asian is a term used to describe British citizens who descended from mainly South Asia, also known as South Asians in the United Kingdom...
, and the first Sikh
Sikh
A Sikh is a follower of Sikhism. It primarily originated in the 15th century in the Punjab region of South Asia. The term "Sikh" has its origin in Sanskrit term शिष्य , meaning "disciple, student" or शिक्ष , meaning "instruction"...
, to become a British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
MP. From the retirement
Retirement
Retirement is the point where a person stops employment completely. A person may also semi-retire by reducing work hours.Many people choose to retire when they are eligible for private or public pension benefits, although some are forced to retire when physical conditions don't allow the person to...
of Sir Edward Heath
Edward Heath
Sir Edward Richard George "Ted" Heath, KG, MBE, PC was a British Conservative politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and as Leader of the Conservative Party ....
in 2001 until his death, Khabra was the oldest MP sitting in the House of Commons, and at the end of his career was the only sitting MP to have served in the forces
Armed Forces
Armed Forces is Elvis Costello's third album, his second with the Attractions, and the first to officially credit the Attractions on the cover. It was released in the UK by Radar Records and in the U.S. by Columbia in 1979...
during the Second World War
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
.
Background
Khabra was born into a well-off SikhSikh
A Sikh is a follower of Sikhism. It primarily originated in the 15th century in the Punjab region of South Asia. The term "Sikh" has its origin in Sanskrit term शिष्य , meaning "disciple, student" or शिक्ष , meaning "instruction"...
farming family in the Punjab, then part of British India. Khabra gave his year of birth as 1924, but his marriage certificate
Marriage certificate
In some jurisdictions a marriage certificate is the official record that two people have undertaken a marriage ceremony. This does include jurisdictions where marriage licenses do not exist...
dated it as 1921. He attended Khalsa High School and Punjab University, but his education was interrupted by the Second World War, and he served in the Indian Army
British Indian Army
The British Indian Army, officially simply the Indian Army, was the principal army of the British Raj in India before the partition of India in 1947...
between 1942 and 1946. He returned to university
University
A university is an institution of higher education and research, which grants academic degrees in a variety of subjects. A university is an organisation that provides both undergraduate education and postgraduate education...
after the war, earning a degree in social services.
He joined the Communist Party of India
Communist Party of India
The Communist Party of India is a national political party in India. In the Indian communist movement, there are different views on exactly when the Indian communist party was founded. The date maintained as the foundation day by CPI is 26 December 1925...
, and became a teacher
Teacher
A teacher or schoolteacher is a person who provides education for pupils and students . The role of teacher is often formal and ongoing, carried out at a school or other place of formal education. In many countries, a person who wishes to become a teacher must first obtain specified professional...
in an elementary school
Elementary school
An elementary school or primary school is an institution where children receive the first stage of compulsory education known as elementary or primary education. Elementary school is the preferred term in some countries, particularly those in North America, where the terms grade school and grammar...
. Refused a visa
Visa (document)
A visa is a document showing that a person is authorized to enter the territory for which it was issued, subject to permission of an immigration official at the time of actual entry. The authorization may be a document, but more commonly it is a stamp endorsed in the applicant's passport...
to emigrate to the US, he moved to the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
in 1959 with his wife and baby. Lacking qualifications to teach in the UK, he worked in factories. He requalified in 1964, becoming an elementary teacher and then a social worker. He became a leading member of the Asian
British Asian
British Asian is a term used to describe British citizens who descended from mainly South Asia, also known as South Asians in the United Kingdom...
community in Southall
Southall
Southall is a large suburban district of west London, England, and part of the London Borough of Ealing. It is situated west of Charing Cross. Neighbouring places include Yeading, Hayes, Hanwell, Heston, Hounslow, Greenford and Northolt...
, west London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. He also became the President of the Indian Workers' Association
Indian Workers' Association
The Indian Workers' Association is a political organisation in Great Britain.The first Indian Workers' Association was founded in London in the 1930s, while another was set up in Coventry in 1938. Set up by immigrant workers from India, their members included Udham Singh, and they focussed on...
, which assisted Indian immigrants to establish themselves and find jobs, and was active in opposition to the far right
Far right
Far-right, extreme right, hard right, radical right, and ultra-right are terms used to discuss the qualitative or quantitative position a group or person occupies within right-wing politics. Far-right politics may involve anti-immigration and anti-integration stances towards groups that are...
.
He left the Communist Party of Great Britain
Communist Party of Great Britain
The Communist Party of Great Britain was the largest communist party in Great Britain, although it never became a mass party like those in France and Italy. It existed from 1920 to 1991.-Formation:...
in the 1960s, and joined the Labour Party
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
in 1972. He became a Justice of the Peace
Justice of the Peace
A justice of the peace is a puisne judicial officer elected or appointed by means of a commission to keep the peace. Depending on the jurisdiction, they might dispense summary justice or merely deal with local administrative applications in common law jurisdictions...
in 1977, and was elected as a member of Ealing Council
London Borough of Ealing
The London Borough of Ealing is a borough in west London.-Location:The London Borough of Ealing borders the London Borough of Hillingdon to the west, the London Borough of Harrow and the London Borough of Brent to the north, the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham to the east and the London...
in 1978. He briefly joined the Social Democratic Party
Social Democratic Party (UK)
The Social Democratic Party was a political party in the United Kingdom that was created on 26 March 1981 and existed until 1988. It was founded by four senior Labour Party 'moderates', dubbed the 'Gang of Four': Roy Jenkins, David Owen, Bill Rodgers and Shirley Williams...
in 1981, leaving two years later and returning to Labour in 1988.
Parliamentary career
He entered ParliamentParliament
A parliament is a legislature, especially in those countries whose system of government is based on the Westminster system modeled after that of the United Kingdom. The name is derived from the French , the action of parler : a parlement is a discussion. The term came to mean a meeting at which...
at the 1992 election
United Kingdom general election, 1992
The United Kingdom general election of 1992 was held on 9 April 1992, and was the fourth consecutive victory for the Conservative Party. This election result was one of the biggest surprises in 20th Century politics, as polling leading up to the day of the election showed Labour under leader Neil...
, the fifth Asian
Asian people
Asian people or Asiatic people is a term with multiple meanings that refers to people who descend from a portion of Asia's population.- Central Asia :...
MP and inherited a large majority in the safe Labour seat of Ealing Southall, following Labour's de-selection of the long-serving sitting MP Sydney Bidwell. He claimed to have the largest caseload of immigration
Immigration
Immigration is the act of foreigners passing or coming into a country for the purpose of permanent residence...
and asylum cases of any MP. He maintained good attendance and voting records, but very rarely spoke in Parliament
Parliament
A parliament is a legislature, especially in those countries whose system of government is based on the Westminster system modeled after that of the United Kingdom. The name is derived from the French , the action of parler : a parlement is a discussion. The term came to mean a meeting at which...
. He said he was proud to speak on the report into the murder of Stephen Lawrence
Stephen Lawrence
Stephen Lawrence was a black British teenager from Eltham, southeast London, who was stabbed to death while waiting for a bus on the evening of 22 April 1993....
, and on the Race Relations Amendment Act 2000.
Khabra was a strong supporter of people with autism
Autism
Autism is a disorder of neural development characterized by impaired social interaction and communication, and by restricted and repetitive behavior. These signs all begin before a child is three years old. Autism affects information processing in the brain by altering how nerve cells and their...
and Asperger syndrome
Asperger syndrome
Asperger's syndrome that is characterized by significant difficulties in social interaction, alongside restricted and repetitive patterns of behavior and interests. It differs from other autism spectrum disorders by its relative preservation of linguistic and cognitive development...
. He sponsored one of the most successful early day motion
Early day motion
An Early Day Motion , in the Westminster system, is a motion, expressed as a single sentence, tabled by Members of Parliament for debate "on an early day" . Controversial EDMs are not signed by Government Ministers, PPS or the Speaker of the House of Commons and very few are debated on the floor...
s on autism in the 2002 Autism Awareness Year; it was supported by 153 parliamentarians
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
of all parties. Khabra backed the work of the Autism Awareness Campaign UK
Autism Awareness Campaign UK
The Autism Awareness Campaign – United Kingdom was launched in 2000 by Ivan and Charika Corea in response to the autism diagnosis of their son, Charin.-Objectives:...
.
How Khabra voted on key issues from 2001-2007:
- Voted very strongly for the Iraq war
- Voted very strongly for university tuition fees
- Voted very strongly for Labour's anti-terrorism laws
- Voted very strongly for introducing ID cards
- Voted very strongly for replacing Trident
- Voted very strongly for the hunting ban
- Voted strongly for equal gay rights
- Voted strongly for a stricter asylumRight of asylumRight of asylum is an ancient juridical notion, under which a person persecuted for political opinions or religious beliefs in his or her own country may be protected by another sovereign authority, a foreign country, or church sanctuaries...
system - Voted for more EU integrationEuropean integrationEuropean integration is the process of industrial, political, legal, economic integration of states wholly or partially in Europe...
- Voted moderately for laws to stop climate changeClimate changeClimate change is a significant and lasting change in the statistical distribution of weather patterns over periods ranging from decades to millions of years. It may be a change in average weather conditions or the distribution of events around that average...
- Voted moderately for introducing foundation hospitals
- Voted moderately for a smoking banSmoking banSmoking bans are public policies, including criminal laws and occupational safety and health regulations, which prohibit tobacco smoking in workplaces and/or other public spaces...
- Voted moderately for removing hereditary peerHereditary peerHereditary peers form part of the Peerage in the United Kingdom. There are over seven hundred peers who hold titles that may be inherited. Formerly, most of them were entitled to sit in the House of Lords, but since the House of Lords Act 1999 only ninety-two are permitted to do so...
s from the House of LordsHouse of LordsThe House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster.... - Voted a mixture of for and against greater autonomyAutonomyAutonomy is a concept found in moral, political and bioethical philosophy. Within these contexts, it is the capacity of a rational individual to make an informed, un-coerced decision...
for schools - Voted moderately against a wholly elected House of LordsHouse of LordsThe House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster....
- Voted very strongly against an investigation into the Iraq war
Controversy
Khabra was known to have made several controversial statements. In the run-up to the 2001 general electionUnited Kingdom general election, 2001
The United Kingdom general election, 2001 was held on Thursday 7 June 2001 to elect 659 members to the British House of Commons. It was dubbed "the quiet landslide" by the media, as the Labour Party was re-elected with another landslide result and only suffered a net loss of 6 seats...
, he suggested that Avtar Lit
Avtar Lit
Avtar Lit is the owner and chairman of Sunrise Radio Group, and was listed by AIM magazine as one of the "20 most powerful Asians in British media" in 2005, and said to have amassed a big personal fortune...
, chairman of Sunrise Radio
Sunrise Radio
Sunrise Radio is the United Kingdom's first Independent Local Radio station to cater specifically for the Asian community. Dr Avtar Lit is the chairman and chief executive of this media group which also operates kismat radio,buzz asia,punjabi radio as well as sunrise tv-Transmission:It initially...
and an independent
Independent (politician)
In politics, an independent or non-party politician is an individual not affiliated to any political party. Independents may hold a centrist viewpoint between those of major political parties, a viewpoint more extreme than any major party, or they may have a viewpoint based on issues that they do...
challenger for his seat, should be "sent back to India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
".
In 2002, Khabra also claimed that the local Somali
Somali people
Somalis are an ethnic group located in the Horn of Africa, also known as the Somali Peninsula. The overwhelming majority of Somalis speak the Somali language, which is part of the Cushitic branch of the Afro-Asiatic language family...
population was behind a recent crime wave in Southall. Somali activists responded to these criticisms by suggesting that their community was being targeted by some Asians who were attempting to drive them out of the area. Ealing Police also indicated that they did not believe Somali youths were responsible for the string of street robberies in question.
Retirement and death
In late 2006, Khabra announced that he would stand down at the next general election.Khabra died as a result of liver
Liver
The liver is a vital organ present in vertebrates and some other animals. It has a wide range of functions, including detoxification, protein synthesis, and production of biochemicals necessary for digestion...
problems on the night of 19 June 2007 at Hammersmith Hospital
Hammersmith Hospital
Hammersmith Hospital is a major teaching hospital in West London. It is part of Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham, and is associated with the Imperial College Faculty of Medicine...
, where he had been being treated for abscess
Abscess
An abscess is a collection of pus that has accumulated in a cavity formed by the tissue in which the pus resides due to an infectious process or other foreign materials...
es on the liver since April. He customarily gave his year of birth as 1924; birth registration was not compulsory in the Punjab
Punjab (India)
Punjab ) is a state in the northwest of the Republic of India, forming part of the larger Punjab region. The state is bordered by the Indian states of Himachal Pradesh to the east, Haryana to the south and southeast and Rajasthan to the southwest as well as the Pakistani province of Punjab to the...
until 1970 and so no birth certificate
Birth certificate
A birth certificate is a vital record that documents the birth of a child. The term "birth certificate" can refer to either the original document certifying the circumstances of the birth or to a certified copy of or representation of the ensuing registration of that birth...
exists, but on his marriage certificate
Marriage certificate
In some jurisdictions a marriage certificate is the official record that two people have undertaken a marriage ceremony. This does include jurisdictions where marriage licenses do not exist...
his year of birth was 1921. He was married twice. His first wife
Wife
A wife is a female partner in a marriage. The rights and obligations of the wife regarding her spouse and others, and her status in the community and in law, varies between cultures and has varied over time.-Origin and etymology:...
died in 1978, and he remarried in 1990. He was survived by his second wife
Wife
A wife is a female partner in a marriage. The rights and obligations of the wife regarding her spouse and others, and her status in the community and in law, varies between cultures and has varied over time.-Origin and etymology:...
, Beulah Marian, and a son from his first marriage.