NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh takes first steps toward marriage

NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh might soon be married as social media posts show him adorned in traditional Punjabi dress at a ceremony usually held in advance of a wedding.

A spokesperson for Singh said Monday the event should not be labelled an engagement but rather simply a “celebration of families meeting for the first time,” where gifts are exchanged and a dinner is held. Despite some other reports, the two have not yet been married.

Singh is pictured alongside Gurkiran Kaur Sidhu, a co-founder of Jangiiro, a firm that specializes in “new-age” Punjabi clothing. A Toronto-based wedding photographer, Gagandeep Singh, posted a shot of the two posing together with the caption “Congrats to the future Prime Minister of Canada @jagmeetsingh & the future First Lady @ginu_sidhu on their Rokha!!

A roka is a traditional ceremony that precedes a Sikh wedding. The word means “to stop,” signalling it is time to stop the search of partner as a match has been found. The two have been dating for some time, the spokesperson said, and this is simply the next step in their relationship.