Gagan Mohindra

Gagan Mohindra (born 7 April 1978)[1] is a British Conservative Party politician. He has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for South West Hertfordshire since the 2019 general election.[2]

Gagan Mohindra
MP
Official portrait, 2020
Member of Parliament
for South West Hertfordshire
Assumed office
12 December 2019
Preceded byDavid Gauke
Majority14,408 (23.5%)
Essex County Councillor
for Chigwell and Loughton Broadway
In office
4 May 2017 – 13 April 2021
Preceded byJohn Knapman
Succeeded byLee Scott
Personal details
Born
Gagan Mohindra

(1978-04-07) 7 April 1978
Political partyConservative
Alma materKing's College London
WebsiteOfficial website

Early life

Gagan Mohindra was born into a Punjabi Hindu[3] family in 1978. Mohindra's parents were both from Punjab, India and immigrated to the United Kingdom before Mohindra was born. His paternal grandfather served in the British Indian Army.[4]

Political career

Mohindra was chosen as the Conservative candidate for South West Hertfordshire after former Justice Secretary, David Gauke, lost the whip for voting to block a no-deal Brexit. Mohindra was one of 15 Members of Parliament of Indian origin elected in the 2019 election.[3] Mohindra was elected as councillor for the Grange Hill Ward of the Epping Forest District Council in May 2006, and has served as a councillor for the Chigwell and Loughton Broadway division on Essex County Council since 2017.[5] He continued in these roles, unpaid, after being elected to parliament until 2021.[6] Former MP for Ilford North, Lee Scott, succeeded Mohindra in his council seat. Mohindra was also previously the chairman of the Essex Conservatives. He stood for the Conservative Party candidate in North Tyneside in the 2010 United Kingdom general election and finished third in a traditionally strong Labour seat.[7] He was also shortlisted to become MP for Brentwood and Ongar in 2017, but lost the nomination to Alex Burghart.[6] In 2020, Mohindra was appointed to the Public Accounts Committee.[8] In October 2020, Gagan voted against the opposition motion to provide free school meals to children during school holidays.[9]

Personal life

Mohindra has roots in the Punjab region of India, and is a member of the Conservative Friends of India, a group within the Conservative Party.[10] Mohindra's parents were both Punjabi, and immigrated to the United Kingdom before Mohindra was born. Mohindra was raised as a Hindu.[3] Mohindra read Mathematics at King's College London and worked in financial services, before founding the Chromex Group four years after graduating, where he worked until 2015. The last filed accounts of the company show liabilities of £1.4 million.[11]

References
  1. Brunskill, Ian (19 March 2020). The Times guide to the House of Commons 2019 : the definitive record of Britain's historic 2019 General Election. p. 229. ISBN 978-0-00-839258-1. OCLC 1129682574.
  2. "Hertfordshire South West parliamentary constituency - Election 2019". BBC News. Retrieved 14 December 2019.
  3. "15 Indian-origin MPs in new UK Parliament". The Times of India.
  4. "About Gagan Mohindra". Gagan Mohindra.
  5. "Councillor Gagan Mohindra". Your council. Epping Forest District Council. Retrieved 14 December 2019.
  6. Meyler, Piers (6 January 2020). "New MP will keep Essex council seat - and monthly allowance". essexlive.
  7. "Tories choose candidate to take place of Gauke". BBC News. 12 November 2019. Retrieved 14 December 2019.
  8. "New appointments this week in UK politics, the civil service and public affairs". Politics Home. 17 March 2020.
  9. "Free School Meals During School Holidays, in line with the Conservative Party's stance that meals outside of term time were the responsibility of parents and not schools". They Work For You. Retrieved 10 October 2021.
  10. "UK polls: 5 Punjab-origin MPs make it to House of Commons". Hindustan Times.
  11. "Gagan Mohindra MP (Conservative)". obv.org.uk.


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