Dinesh Vasu Dash
Dinesh Vasu Dash | |
|---|---|
| தினேஷ் வாசு தாஸ் | |
Dinesh campaigning in the 2025 general election | |
| Mayor of South East District | |
| Assumed office 23 May 2025 | |
| Prime Minister | Lawrence Wong |
| Preceded by | Fahmi Aliman |
| Member of the Singapore Parliament for East Coast GRC | |
| Assumed office 3 May 2025 | |
| Preceded by | PAP held |
| Majority | 23,817 (17.46%) |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Dinesh Vasu Dash 11 November 1974[1][2] Singapore |
| Political party | People's Action Party |
| Spouse | Rathiga Velaithan |
| Children | 3 |
| Military service | |
| Branch/service | Singapore Army |
| Years of service | Till 2020 |
| Rank | Brigadier-General |
Dinesh Vasu Dash (born 11 November 1974)[1] is a Singaporean politician, former civil servant and brigadier-general. A member of the governing People's Action Party (PAP), he has been serving as Minister of State for Culture, Community and Youth, Minister of State for Manpower and Mayor of South East District since 2025.
Early life
Dinesh is a third-generation Singaporean with ancestral roots in Varkala, Kerala. His paternal grandfather ran a small business servicing the British naval base in Sembawang in the 1960s, while his maternal family lived in Malaysia before settling in Singapore.[3]
Dinesh grew up in a one-room flat at the police quarters in Pearl's Hill. He lived with his parents, brother and grandmother. They later moved to a three-room Housing and Development Board flat along Telok Blangah Rise.[4]
Dinesh's father, a former police officer, had served as the personal security officer to former President Devan Nair and as an alternate officer to former Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew.[4]
Dinesh graduated from the Anglo-Chinese Junior College in 1992, and went on to study electrical engineering at the National University of Singapore.[5] He attended the Defence Services Staff College in Wellington, Tamil Nadu for a year between 2006 and 2007.[6][3]
Career
A member of the People's Action Party (PAP), he has been the Member of Parliament (MP) representing the Bedok division of East Coast GRC since 2025.[7]
Prior to entering politics, he served as the chief executive of the Agency for Integrated Care, Senior Director in the Ministry of Health (Singapore). He oversaw national vaccination operations during the COVID-19 pandemic and the rollout of Healthier SG, a preventive health programme. He served as a Brigadier General commanding 2nd People's Defence Force in the Singapore Armed Forces.[1] During his time in the military, he was deployed to Afghanistan in 2009 for eight months. He was the ground commander during the Trump-Kim summit in Singapore in 2018. He also served as the lead coffin bearer, the only Indian, in the state funeral of former Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew in 2015.[6]
He served as a member of the Advisory Council on Community Relations in Defence (ACCORD). He was also an EXCO member of SINDA and a Board member of the Hindu Advisory Board.[8]
Dinesh made his political debut in the 2025 general elections where he was fielded in East Coast GRC helmed by Anchor Minister Edwin Tong facing a Workers' Party team led by ex-NCMP Yee Jenn Jong.[9][10][11] His team went on to defeat the WP team with 58.76% of the votes making Dinesh a MP-elect.
Personal life
Dinesh is married to Rathiga Velaithan, a former cancer researcher in the public sector, and they have three children. He is a fan of heavy metal music and rock music, and plays golf.[8][4]
He speaks fluent Malayalam and Tamil.[3]
References
- ^ a b c "Ex-AIC chief Dinesh Vasu Dash answered two calls to serve: To fight Covid-19 and to join the PAP". The Straits Times. 18 April 2025. ISSN 0585-3923. Retrieved 3 May 2025.
- ^ "Instagram". www.instagram.com. Retrieved 30 June 2025.
- ^ a b c குமார், வி கே சந்தோஷ் (8 May 2025). "Heart for Indian community issues". www.tamilmurasu.com.sg (in Tamil). Retrieved 3 June 2025.
- ^ a b c "GE2025: The PAP new face whose friends thought he'd join an opposition party". www.channelnewsasia.com. Retrieved 3 June 2025.
- ^ "Blessed to be invited to the One ACS Career Forum and to share the stage… | Dinesh Vasu Dash". www.linkedin.com. Retrieved 3 June 2025.
- ^ a b "'I'm not a paper General'". The New Paper. 8 May 2025. Retrieved 3 June 2025.
- ^ "GE2025: PAP wins 58.76% of votes against WP in East Coast, takes Mountbatten with 63.84%". The Straits Times. 4 May 2025. ISSN 0585-3923. Retrieved 3 May 2025.
- ^ a b "Dinesh Vasu Dash". People's Action Party. Retrieved 3 June 2025.
- ^ "GE2025: PAP's potential East Coast GRC team shaping up as ex-AIC chief, former TV host join walkabout". CNA. Retrieved 28 June 2025.
- ^ Oh, Tessa (23 April 2025). "Singapore election 2025: Edwin Tong heads PAP team in East Coast GRC; Yee Jenn Jong makes comeback for WP". The Business Times. Retrieved 28 June 2025.
- ^ "GE2025: PAP keeps opposition guessing with last-minute deployments on Nomination Day". The Straits Times. 23 April 2025. ISSN 0585-3923. Retrieved 28 June 2025.