WINNER

Jas Johal

Richmond-Queensborough

Jas is an award-winning journalist with over 23-years of reporting experience. From 2008 to 2011, he served as Global Television’s Asia bureau chief based in Beijing and New Delhi. In 2013, Johal became a media fellow at the Asia Pacific Foundation, producing a documentary that focused on Asia’s energy security and its impact on Canada. He is also a recipient of two Jack Webster Awards, one RTNDA National Award, and a Canadian Association of Broadcasters’ Award.

Most recently, Johal served as Director of Communications for the BC LNG Alliance.

Johal and his wife Seera have a son, Ishaan.

LOSERS

Amrik Virk

Surrey-Guildford

Amrik was appointed as Minister of Technology, Innovation and Citizens’ Services on December 18, 2014. Previously he served as Minister of Advanced Education from June 2013, after being elected as MLA in the riding of Surrey-Tynehead in the 2013 Provincial General Election.

Born in India, Virk moved with his family to Williams Lake, B.C. when he was five years old.

After the completion of a Bachelor of Arts Degree majoring in Economics and History at Simon Fraser University, Virk joined the Royal Canadian Mounted Police in 1987. After an extensive career in a variety of policing roles including sharpshooter with Emergency Response Teams, he retired at the rank of inspector in 2013. Virk is a recipient of two bravery awards, including a Commissioner’s Commendation, as well as The Queen’s Golden Jubilee Medal and The Queen’s Silver Jubilee Medal.

Virk also spent six years on the board of directors of the Surrey Memorial Hospital Foundation and served on the board of Kwantlen Polytechnic University.

Virk lives in Surrey with his wife Jatinder. They have been married for more than 25 years and have three daughters.

Gurminder Singh Parihar

Surrey-Newton

Local accountant, business owner and volunteer Gurminder  has been a partner with Parihar & Associates Chartered Professional Accountants since 2004. He holds Certified General Account and Chartered Professional Account designations, and previously served as a senior accountant with accounting firms across Canada and the U.K., developing a wealth of experience in general accounting, tax planning, business consultation, and public engagement.

Parihar is a husband and the father of two adult children attending university.

Puneet Sandhar

Surrey-Panorama

Puneet, local lawyer and community leader, immigrated to Canada from India in 2002, and quickly established herself in her career as a named partner with Sanghera Sandhar Law Group in Surrey after being called to the BC Bar in 2006. She holds a BA (Hons) and an LLB from Guru Nanak Dev University in India.

Punnet, a mother of two, is an active community leader, serving as a member of various organizations including the Board of Legal Services Society British Columbia, Board of Variance with the City of Surrey, Advisory Board of Resource Works, and Board of Punjab Digital Library. She is also director of the South Asian Business Association of B.C and sits on the Mayor’s Business Advisory Committee for the City of Surrey. For her contributions to the community, she was awarded the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Medal in 2012.

Surrey-Whalley

Sargy, a longtime public servant and active community volunteer, has worked as a production line employee at BC Packers, a communications operator for Coquitlam RCMP, and a team leader with Service Canada. She and her husband are also entrepreneurs, involved in building small housing developments.

Chima has been an active volunteer with the Surrey and Delta Minor Hockey Associations and the Surrey Parks and Recreation Committee. She has served as chair of the Public Service Alliance of Canada’s Women’s and Human Rights Committees, vice president of the Pacific Canada Heritage Centre, and president of the Canada Employment and Immigration Union Local 20949.

Chima lives in Surrey with her husband and three children. Her brother is the former federal cabinet minister Herb Dhaliwal.