Kaushaliya Virjibhai Vaghela is an

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

n politician. She was a member of the

Victorian Legislative Council The Victorian Legislative Council (VLC) is the upper house of the bicameral Parliament of Victoria, Australia, the lower house being the Legislative Assembly. Both houses sit at Parliament House in Spring Street, Melbourne. The Legislative Co ...

from 2018 to 2022, representing the

Western Metropolitan Region Western Metropolitan Region is one of the eight electoral regions of Victoria, Australia, which elects five members to the Victorian Legislative Council (also referred to as the upper house) by proportional representation. The region was created ...

. She was the first Indian-born member of the Victorian Parliament, and is a

Hindu Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...

. Before her preselection in 2018, she worked as a part-time adviser to then-State Minister for Multicultural Affairs, Robin Scott.

Resignation from the ALP

On 9 February 2022, Vaghela

crossed the floor Crossed may refer to: * ''Crossed'' (comics), a 2008 comic book series by Garth Ennis * ''Crossed'' (novel), a 2010 young adult novel by Ally Condie * "Crossed" (''The Walking Dead''), an episode of the television series ''The Walking Dead'' S ...

in support of

Adem Somyurek Adem Kubilay Somyurek (born 25 September 1967 in Izmir, Turkey) is an Australian politician. He has served as a member of the Victorian Legislative Council representing South Eastern Metropolitan Region since 2002. Somyurek was a member of ...

's motion to refer the government to the

Victorian Ombudsman Ombudsmen in Australia are independent agencies who assist when a dispute arises between individuals and industry bodies or government agencies. Government ombudsman services are free to the public, like many other ombudsman and dispute resoluti ...

in relation to the alleged misuse of taxpayer funds, involving the diversion of parliamentary staffing resources to political campaigning and party factional activities prior to the

2014 Victorian state election The 2014 Victorian state election, held on Saturday, 29 November 2014, was for the 58th Parliament of Victoria. All 88 seats in the Victorian Legislative Assembly and 40 seats in the Victorian Legislative Council were up for election. The incumb ...

. In March 2022, Vaghela resigned from the ALP, making serious allegations of bullying against the party. Her criticisms were aired after she had been left off the Labor ticket for the 2022 state election, following an investigation by the

Independent Broad-based Anti-corruption Commission The Independent Broad-based Anti-corruption Commission (IBAC) is Victoria's anti-corruption agency with jurisdiction over the public sector. It does this by: * investigating serious corruption and police misconduct * informing the public sector, ...

(IBAC) into the conduct of her husband and staff members.

New Democrats party

In July 2022, Vaghela announced that she had formed the New Democrats party, with her as its secretary. After the party gained registration with the

Victorian Electoral Commission Victorian or Victorians may refer to: 19th century * Victorian era, British history during Queen Victoria's 19th-century reign ** Victorian architecture ** Victorian house ** Victorian decorative arts ** Victorian fashion ** Victorian literature ...

in October 2022, she claimed that almost 2,000 people had joined in response to her appeal for support. Vaghela was defeated at the 2022 state election, polling 0.5%. The New Democrats polled 0.2% across Victoria.

References

Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Australian Labor Party members of the Parliament of Victoria Members of the Victorian Legislative Council Women members of the Victorian Legislative Council Indian emigrants to Australia Australian Hindus People from Jamnagar 21st-century Australian politicians 21st-century Australian women politicians {{Australia-Labor-Victoria-MP-stub

Resignation from the ALP

New Democrats party

See also

References