Indian-origin MPs will not contest elections in Britain, end ties with politics

Virendra Sharma, a veteran British MP of Indian origin and a vocal supporter of close India-Britain relations for years, announced that he will no longer be active in politics. He will also not contest the general elections to be held in Britain on July 4. The 77-year-old Labour Party MP said that now he wants to fulfill his responsibilities as a grandfather, so it is time for a new chapter in his life.
He won the Punjabi-dominated Ealing Southall constituency in a by-election in 2007 and has since won four consecutive general elections. Born in Mandhali village in Punjab, Sharma moved to Britain in 1968 and worked as a bus conductor before studying at the London School of Economics (LSE) on a trade union scholarship and becoming a prominent trade union member.
Sharma said in a letter addressed to his party on Monday evening, “For more than 50 years I have served the party in some form or the other. Now I believe it is time to start another chapter. I want to tell you that I will not contest the next election… This will not reduce my desire for the Labor Party to win and I am confident that we will win.'' He said, “I will continue to support the Labor Party and I hope that I will remain a part of the party's policies, but not from inside the 'House of Commons'.