
An Indian origin Member of Canadian Parliament spoke in Kannada in the lower house of the parliament on Thursday. Chandra Arya, the MP of Indian origin. Arya even posted the video of his speech on Twitter.
“I spoke in my mother tongue (first language) Kannada in Canadian parliament. This beautiful language has long history and is spoken by about 50 million people. This is the first time Kannada is spoken in any parliament in the world outside of India,” he tweeted.
During his speech in the Canadian Parliament, Arya expressed his happiness at having been able to speak in his mother tongue. He said that it was a moment of pride for 50 million Kannada-speaking people living in Canada.
He concluded his speech by mentioning lines from a song written by poet Kuvempu. The lines say, "Wherever you are, however you are, be a Kannadiga always."
Arya was born in Tumkuru District of southern Indian state of Karnataka. In Canadian Parliament, he represents electoral district of Nepean in the lower house (House of Commons). Chandra Arya was re-elected from the Liberal Party of Canada during federal elections that were held in the year 2019.
Arya completed his education in India. He holds bachelor's degree in engineering and a masters in business administration.
With his speech in Kannada, the Canadian Parliament has got to experience another Indian language other than Punjabi. Canada is home to large Indian diaspora and Punjabi is one of the official languages of the Canadian Parliament.
Chandra Arya worked in technology sector before entering politics in Canada. In Canada, he is a resident of Nepean with his wife Sangeetha. She has worked on Ottawa Catholic School Board.
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