Newly minted British MP Uma Kumaran on Sunday shared a photo of a comfort meal she had with her parents – a crispy, golden thosai served with sambar on a glass plate.
The tweet resonated with the Tamil diaspora who left several comments expressing their love for the culinary combination, reported Indian newspaper DT Next.
“It’s been so long since I sat down to eat with my parents. Mum wanted to make roast but I had other ideas… Dosa and sambar,” Ms Kumaran wrote on X.
Last Friday, she became the first MP for Stratford and Bow, a constituency in East London, and the first Tamil woman elected to the British Parliament.
The 36-year-old secured 19,145 votes in the parliamentary elections and pushed the Conservative Party candidate (3,144 votes) to fourth position.
Lauding her achievement, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin said on X: “You bring great pride to the Tamil community.”
Ms Kumaran’s family migrated to England in the 1980s to escape the brutal civil war in Sri Lanka that killed thousands of Tamils.
Last week, she spoke about her experience getting into politics, her Tamil roots and her parents.
“Britain offered them a safe refuge,” she told the Tamil Guardian. “Tamils fleeing the (civil war) and violence were given amnesty in the UK and Canada. It was a Labour MP who took up my parents’ casework and helped them with their immigration status in the 80s.”
Her parents, originally from Jaffna in Sri Lanka, have strong links to trade unionism and public service, influencing her strong Labour values.
Born and raised in London, Ms Kumaran’s political journey includes working for health service professionals, as a parliamentary researcher and caseworker for Labour MP Dawn Butler, and serving as deputy director of Parliamentary Affairs for Labour Party leader and Prime Minister Keir Starmer.
Ms Kumaran said of her election: “It is the honour of my life to be elected to serve as the first ever Member of Parliament (MP) for Stratford and Bow. Thank you to all who placed your trust in me and in the Labour Party. I’ll always be your voice and your representative.”
Reflecting on her heritage and family’s influence, she said: “My grandad was one of Jaffna’s first trade unionists. Both my grandfathers were civil servants and always had a sense of public service. This runs throughout my family.”
A record 28 Indian-origin politicians were elected to the House of Commons last week as the Labour Party made a come back to power after 14 years.
The lengthy list includes some prominent Conservatives, including former prime minister Rishi Sunak who survived an overall brutal outcome for the Tory party as well as several new faces.
Kerala-born Sojan Joseph became the first Labour candidate to win the Ashford constituency in its 139-year history.
Celebrations broke out in Kerala as the poll was called in favour of the nurse who has resided in the UK since 2002, reported The Mint.
Mr Sojan is originally from Kaipuzha, a small village in Kottayam district, and currently serves as a mental health nurse with the Kent National Health Service.
Labour party veterans Seema Malhotra (Feltham and Heston) and Lisa Nandy (Wigan) retained their seats, while Goan-origin Valerie Vaz won the newly formed Walsall and Bloxwich constituency.
First-time Labour party MPs include Jas Athwal (Ilford South), Baggy Shanker (Derby South), Satvir Kaur (Southampton Test), Harpreet Uppal (Huddersfield), Warinder Juss (Wolverhampton West), Gurinder Josan (Smethwick), Kanishka Narayan (Vale of Glamorgan), Sonia Kumar (Dudley), Sureena Brackenbridge (Wolverhampton North East), Kirith Entwistle (Bolton North East) and Jeevun Sandher (Loughborough).
Mr Starmer will oversee a Parliament more ethnically diverse and more female than ever. Black, Asian and ethnic minority lawmakers will represent around 13 per cent of the House of Commons, up from 10 per cent in 2019, when Britain last held a parliamentary election.
It is the largest share of ethnic minority members in the lower house, according to British Future, a think tank.
In the 44 years since outgoing Prime Minister Rishi Sunak was born, minority representation in Britain’s Parliament increased from zero to nearly one in seven lawmakers, British Future said.
The new parliament will also include a record 242 female lawmakers.
