Labor’s Sameer Pandey elected Parramatta Lord Mayor

A western Sydney councillor has made history as the first Lord Mayor in Australia to be born in India, a day before he is due to meet the Prime Minister of the subcontinental nation.

Sameer Pandye is Parramatta’s new Lord Mayor Sameer Pandey. Picture: Ben Williams Photography

Parramatta Labor councillor Sameer Pandey has made history as the first Lord Mayor in Australia to be born in India and will fittingly meet the prime minister of his ancestral home on Tuesday.

Cr Pandey, who was elected the Deputy Mayor with Donna Davis as Mayor in January last year, narrowly defeated Our Local Community’s Michelle Garrard seven votes to six on Monday.

He expressed his pride to get the top job during the council-only vote, which was carried out through a show of hands after Cr Davis announced she would step down as the Lord Mayor following her swearing in to Parliament as the Parramatta state Labor MP.

She will continue to serve as an Epping ward councillor until September 2024.

Cr Pandey, a married father-of-two, was born in industrial city Tatanagar (also called Jamshedpur) and migrated to Australia on a business visa in 1999.

Sameer Pandey will replace Parramatta Lord Mayor Donna Davis to helm the council.

“I am very proud to be the first Lord Mayor of Indian origin anywhere in Australia, which recognises the contribution the people from the Indian subcontinent are making to the Australia community’’ he told the chamber at its meeting in the Phive building.

“Parramatta is one of the most diverse LGAs in the country and we respect and embrace the cultural distinctions of all who are drawn to live, work and visit our beautiful city.

“The future of greater Sydney is in Parramatta.’’

He narrowly lost the state election to Winston Hills Liberal incumbent Mark Taylor.

Cr Pandey shared his background in law and software development, and said he rounded out his non-political career managing clinical trials for a global IT health services company.

He will meet Indian Prime Minister Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Sydney and discuss the Little India precinct at Harris Park.

Labor councillors Davis, Patricia Prociv, Paul Noack, Pierre Esber, Cameron Maclean and Ange Humphries backed Cr Pandey.

Councillors who supported Cr Garrard were independents Lorraine Wearne and Georgina Valjak, and Our Local Community’s Henry Green, Donna Wang and Dan Siviero.

Independent Cr Kellie Darley and Greens’ Phil Bradley abstained from voting.

Donna Davis said her key achievements as Lord Mayor since January last year included seeing Parramatta Square come to fruition, removing north and southern Parramatta from the Parramatta CBD Planning Proposal to protect their heritage, and overseeing the “amazing” Parramatta Aquatic Centre and the Riverside Theatres projects get off the ground.

The council will elect its deputy mayor at the June 5 meeting.