Keralite Sajish Tom Sworn in as Deputy Mayor of Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council

LONDON May 14: Sajeesh Tom, who emerged as the only Labour Party councillor elected from Hampshire County in last week’s UK local elections, has now created history by taking office as the new Deputy Mayor of the Basingstoke Borough Council.

At a time when it is itself rare to simultaneously serve as a member of both a County Council and a Borough Council, becoming the Deputy Mayor of a borough in addition to those responsibilities is considered highly unusual even in UK politics. Sajeesh Tom has now stepped into this rare distinction, becoming a source of pride for the entire expatriate community.

Representing the Popley Ward in the Basingstoke Borough Council since 2021, Sajeesh Tom has consistently been one of the councillors winning elections with impressive majorities. Although the Basingstoke North Division in Hampshire County — which he won this year — has traditionally been a Labour-held division, even the Labour Party had considered victory unlikely this time due to the strong surge of the far-right party “Reform UK.”

Only a handful of Malayalis in UK political history have reached the positions of Deputy Mayor or Mayor. Sajeesh Tom now joins the ranks of Malayalis such as Omena Gangadharan, Philip Abraham, Manju Shahul Hameed, Tom Aditya, and Baiju Thittala. According to the UK’s mayoral protocol, Sajeesh Tom is expected to be elected Mayor next May.

Originally from Chempu Ayyanamparambil near Vaikom in Kottayam district, Sajeesh’s family is now settled in Thekkan Paravoor, within the Udayamperoor Grama Panchayat area of Ernakulam district. His wife, Ancy, works as a Deputy Sister in the ICU department of Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. Their only daughter, Aleena, works in London.

Sajeesh Tom served as the National General Secretary of UKM, the national organization of Malayali associations in the UK, during 2015 and 2016. He later served for four years as the organization’s National Public Relations Officer. A highly active figure in the UK public sphere for more than two decades, Sajeesh also led several notable initiatives as Treasurer of the Basingstoke Multicultural Forum for three consecutive terms, earning the “Mayor’s Voluntary Award” in 2012.

Currently working in the administration department at Basingstoke NHS Hospital, Sajeesh Tom has also been active in labour movements. Over the years, he has held several responsibilities within UNISON, one of the UK’s major trade unions, including Branch Chairperson, Labour Link Officer, member of the South East Regional Finance Committee, and member of the Regional Welfare Committee.