London, Aug. 5: Shami Chakrabarti, the former director of the human rights group Liberty, has been elevated to the House of Lords in David Cameron's dissolution honours, triggering a storm of protest from Britain's Jewish leaders and even some Labour Party members.

Shami was born in Harrow, north London, on June 16, 1969, of parents who arrived in the UK from Calcutta.

She is thought to be only the third Bengali to be elevated to the peerage after Satyendra Prasanno Sinha, Lord Sinha of Raipur (1863-1928), who was made a hereditary peer in 1919, and Sushanta Kumar Bhattacharyya, Baron Bhattacharyya, 76, founder of the Warwick Manufacturing Group, who was ennobled in 2004.

Shami, probably the most high profile Bengali-origin woman in Britain, was nominated not by Cameron in the traditional honours list that is the compiled by an outgoing Prime Minister but by Jeremy Corbyn, the Labour leader.

She will sit in the House of Lords as an independent Crossbencher.

Even her critics agree she is a worthy candidate, having been a doughty director of Liberty from September 2003 to March 2016. But an investigation she chaired recently into ant-Semitism in the Labour Party was not considered by Jewish leaders to be harsh enough.

That she has now accepted a peerage from the Labour leader is being interpreted as a behind the scenes deal though there is no evidence to back up such allegations.

Shami's review found there was evidence of "ignorant attitudes" but said the "Labour Party is not overrun by anti-Semitism, Islamophobia, or other forms of racism".

The report was criticised by Board of Deputies president Jonathan Arkush as "weak on the demonisation of Israel" and for omitting "any mention of party figures who have displayed friendship towards terrorists".

The Chief Rabbi said the anti-Semitism report's reputation now "lies in tatters" following Shami's appointment to the Lords just a month after the inquiry reported back.

In a statement posted on Twitter, Ephraim Mirvis said: "Shami Chakrabarti has a proud record of public service, but in accepting this peerage, the credibility of her report lies in tatters and the Labour Party's stated intention, to unequivocally tackle anti-Semitism, remains woefully unrealised."

Wes Streeting, Labour MP for Ilford North, added his criticism: "Shami Chakrabarti will bring great experience to Lords. But let's not pretend that a Labour peerage in these circumstances doesn't stink."

Defending the peerage, a spokesman for Corbyn, said: "Shami Chakrabarti shares Jeremy's ambition for reform of the House of Lords. Her career has been one of public service and human rights advocacy. Her legal and campaigning skills, and the trust that she has gained from many ordinary Britons, will be a considerable asset to the House of Lords. Brexit will put many hard-fought rights at risk, so it is crucial that those equipped with the right skills are given the opportunity to hold this Government to account."

Shami was gracious: "I am honoured to accept Jeremy Corbyn's challenge and opportunity to help hold the Government to account. This is a dangerous moment for our country and we share vital human rights values that need defending more than ever before in my lifetime."

Shami cannot become anything like Baroness Chakrabarti of Esplanade - the place name selected will have to be in the UK.

Shami's father, a bookkeeper, is said to have given his daughter an abiding interest in civil liberties. She attended Bentley Wood High School, a girls' comprehensive school, and then Harrow Weald Sixth Form College.

After graduating with a Bachelor of Laws from the London School of Economics, Shami was called to the Bar by the Middle Temple in 1994. In 1996, she started working as a barrister for the Home Office. She joined Liberty in 2001, becoming its director two years later and soon a familiar figure, with an army of fans, on television.

In 1995 Shami married Martyn Hopper, a City lawyer. The couple have one son. The marriage was dissolved in 2014.

In his Spectator blog, columnist Rod Liddle was unable to resist a tongue in cheek comment when she stepped down as director of Liberty.

HE wrote: "The woman is stepping down as boss of Liberty, for whom - whatever your political views - she has been a hugely effective campaigner. And, further credit: for a comprehensive school girl from an ethnic minority to have achieved so much is pretty laudable, I would argue."

"I don't suppose we'll be seeing much less of her," he predicted.

Referring to her Wikipedia entry, he added unkindly: "She holds more job titles than an African dictator."

In August 2013, Shami clashed with Theresa May, then Home Secretary, over the latter's tactics to curb illegal immigration. In an exercise widely condemned as xenophobic, the Home Office sent out large vans into immigrant areas of London warning overstaying migrants to "Go home, or you'll be picked up and deported".

Shami caused much hilarity by responding with a Liberty own van that circled the Home Office, Westminster and surrounding areas with its retaliatory message, "Stirring up tension and division in the UK illegally? Home Office, think again."

In 2014, when May wanted to introduce a new package of tough security measures aimed at preventing UK-born Muslims from being radicalised after anticipating "Mumbai-style gun attacks", Shami slapped her down.

"Yet again politicians resort to high talk and rushed legislation in an attempt to look tough in the face of terrorism," she said. "So youngsters will have their passports seized at borders and others will be prevented coming home. Even our universities must read from ministers' scripts on radicalisation. Another chilling recipe for injustice and resentment by closing down the open society you seek to promote."

The previous year an unusual portrait of Shami went on display at the National Portrait Gallery. The black and white photographic portrait showed Shami holding a mask with a likeness of herself.

The idea behind the 93cm by 80cm portrait by Gillian Wearing, a Turner Prize winner and one of the new generation of talented British artists, partly came from Shami.

Shami's portrait "was taken with a large-format camera and shows Chakrabarti holding a wax mask of herself hanging from a ribbon," according to the gallery.

Sandy Nairne, director of the National Portrait Gallery, commented at the time: "Gillian Wearing's double image of Shami Chakrabarti is a powerful portrait of a woman who is making an exceptional contribution to civil liberties and human rights."