The Tribune – Canadian film-maker to trace roots of Sikh immigrants

Prabhjot Singh, Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, May 12. Biologist-turned film maker David R Gray of Victoria (Canada) is in Punjab to trace descendants of some early Sikh settlers in his country, including those who fought in the World War I and worked in British Columbia forests to make them habitable.

Gray, who is here for four days in his first visit to India, says his interest in Sikh immigration to Canada stemmed from his chance tracking of some artifacts and leftovers of some Chinese and Indian immigrants in Victoria.

The film maker has been working in Canada for the past last 50 years, tracing some of the first Sikh settlers in British Columbia.

“It was a chance happening that we found so many of these interesting artifacts in Victoria that dated back to the early 20th century. Me and my brother learnt that there were about 150 Chinese who worked in the area. In our follow up, we found that there were at least 40 Sikhs from India who worked with these Chinese in the area.

“Our initial attempts of tracing these Chinese were unsuccessful as the community was reluctant to cooperate. However, when we went to a Sikh temple to know about Sikh immigrants, we were able to get information on almost everything required. Some first generation immigrants and older people were able to help us with names and other details of early Sikh settlers, including those who came via Koma Gata Maru.

Since then, I have been working on Sikh immigration to Canada,” says Gray, some of whose documentaries in this regard have been sponsored by Omni TV channel and the Department of Immigration and Citizenship of Canada.

“I was thinking of writing a book but then took to film production,” he says and expresses hope to find some of the descendants of eight Sikh soldiers who fought for Canada in World War I in France. Three of them came from Khraudi, Mahilpur and Paldi in Punjab. Despite many efforts, we could not trace any of their descendants in Canada.

We went to France and other European countries to track their movements during the World War I. It was so difficult to track them down as they all had a common name, ‘Singh’. No one could believe till the beginning of the current millennium that Sikhs had fought for Canada in the World War I, he said.

At that time, Indians were not given voting or citizenship rights in Canada. He says Private Bukkam Singh and Private Lachman Singh, for example, had been tracked down as a researcher on Indians in the Canadian army had chanced upon one of the medals won by Private Bukkam Singh.

He says 10 years back, he could not have thought of such a venture. Canadian Consul-General in Chandigarh Scott Slessor says while browsing the web on Sikh Film Festival in New York, he came across Gray’s work and decided to invite him to India.

Gray says out of about 40 Indians (Sikhs) who are believed to have fought for Canada, only a handful could be traced.

http://www.tribuneindia.com/2013/20130513/punjab.htm#15

United Sikhs – Sikhs Ask Canadian PM to Raise France’s Turban Ban at Meeting with French PM

Harper Should Raise France’s Turban Ban at Meeting with French Prime Minister: Canadian Liberal Leader

United Sikhs wrote recently to the Canadian Prime Minister, Stephen Harper, requesting him to raise his objection to the French turban ban during his meeting this week with his counterpart, Jean-Marc Ayrault.

Sikhs globally believe that a ban on the turban is a betrayal of France’s motto- Liberté, égalité, fraternité.

Canadian Liberal Leader Bob Rae said in a statement today, “If we are to be a defender of rights, we must defend them around the world, including in France. We would encourage Mr. Harper to have a frank and open discussion with his French counterpart on this issue”.

Canadian Sikhs have also asked all Canadian Members of National and Provincial Parliaments to release similar statements supporting a Sikh’s right to his turban, urging Mr. Harper to raise this issue with the French PM.

Toronto, Canada: United Sikhs wrote to the Canadian Prime Minister earlier this week asking him to raise his objection to the turban ban in France, during his meeting with his French counterpart, who is currently visiting Canada.

“It is not very often that the people of a nation write directly to their Prime Minister about the threat of their identity in another sovereign state,” United Sikhs’ director, Ranbir Singh, said in the letter to the Canadian Prime Minister.

“Unless France allows Sikhs to wear a turban in schools and on ID documents photographs, the Sikh turban would be deemed to be banned in France, which will be a betrayal of France’s motto – Liberté, égalité, fraternité,” the letter added.

“Globalization in the 21st century has made human rights a border-less right. It is now no longer acceptable to say that we cannot interfere with the ‘internal affairs’ of a sovereign state (France). The precedent was set in the previous century when the world joined the Blacks of South Africa to fight apartheid – an ‘internal affair’ of a sovereign state. Just as the Blacks of South Africa could not remove the color of their skin, Sikhs cannot remove their turban and strip themselves of their identity,” the letter said.

Liberal Leader Bob Rae made the following statement today on Stephen Harper’s meeting with French Prime Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault:

“France’s decision to ban the wearing of turbans and other religious symbols in identification photos, government schools and public spaces has received international criticism and flies in the face of religious freedom. As a result of this ban, many Sikhs are denied access to employment, public health care and social benefits that require a government identification card. It should be an issue of great concern to this Conservative government and all Canadians.

After the much-publicized launch of Canada’s new Office of Religious Freedoms, today’s meeting is an ideal opportunity for this government to come to the defense of minority rights and walk the walk on religious freedoms. If we are to be a defender of rights, we must defend them around the world, including in France. We would encourage Mr. Harper to have a frank and open discussion with his French counterpart on this issue.”

In 2008, United Sikhs’ attorneys filed three cases against the French turban ban in schools and ID photos before the UN Human Rights Committee (UNHRC).

Victory was achieved at the UNHRC in the cases of both, Bikramjit Singh and Ranjit Singh. We await to hear the outcome of Shingara Singh’s case. If there was any doubt about the legality of France’s action, the eminent jurists of the UNHRC recently pronounced unequivocally that France had violated the human rights of both Bikramjit Singh and Ranjit Singh by denying them their religious right to wear a turban.

However, France has not overturned their ban and continue to enforce it on Bikramjit Singh and Ranjit Singh despite UNHRC’s decision. All Canadian Sikhs, United Sikhs’ team members and the global Sikh community urge and seek the support of the Canadian Government, Leaders of New Democratic Party, Liberal Party of Canada and all Members of the Parliaments to help raise this ban.

Sukhwinder Singh
Director, United Sikhs
Tel: 1-905-672-2245
Fax: 1-810-885-4264
unitedsikhs-canada@unitedsikhs.org

The Tribune – Statewide menace; Drugs: UN report had sounded alert, but police called it ‘false’

Jupinderjit Singh, Tribune News Service

Bathinda, March 11. That Punjab is a major transit point for drugs to the US and Canada has been re-affirmed with the busting of yet another drug ring allegedly involving policemen and sportspersons.

Earlier too the Punjab Police, the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) and the counter-intelligence wing of the state police along with the Delhi police collectively busted several groups involved in the racket. However, investigations in most cases reached a dead end.

A drug carrier or his leader usually do not know about the kingpin. Hence, their arrest provides no leads and the investigation hits a dead end.

Informed sources said that peddlers in the past have used religious leaders and books for smuggling drugs to western countries from Punjab. The World Drug Report 2006 was the first to mention Punjab as the transit point for narcotics, stating that heroin and opium from Afghanistan and Pakistan reached Punjab via its borders with Pakistan or from Jammu and Kashmir. In Ludhiana, the drugs were not only stored but also purified to make drugs like Ecstasy, which is used in rave parties.

Though the then state police chief dismissed the UN report as false, the Delhi police busted an international syndicate with the arrest of Toronto-based Gurdish Singh Toor alias Amarjeet Singh from Ludhiana.

An Intelligence report in 2000 had claimed that 200 policemen were hand in glove with drug smugglers. “There are policemen who drive swanky cars and own huge properties. A sustained operation can bust the police-smuggler nexus.”

In 2008, Head Constable Rachan Singh, a kabaddi player with 70 medals in national and international tournaments to his credit, was arrested for hobnobbing with smugglers. He had been specially deployed with the counter-intelligence unit of the state police to nab the smugglers. The policeman owned a Ford Endeavour, a Skoda Octavia and two Lancer cars. A Canadian NRI, Arvinder Singh, and two others were also caught with the policeman.

http://www.tribuneindia.com/2013/20130312/punjab.htm#6

The Asian Age – India Olympic boxer denies heroin link

Tanveer Thakur, Asian Age Correspondent

Chandigarh, 9 March 2013. The Punjab police will call two boxers for questioning, one of them Olympic bronze medalist Vijender Singh, after a drug peddler arrested recently in a a major heroin bust alleged “he had links with these boxers”.

Although the Punjab police is treading with caution and is in no hurry to draw any conclusion on the allegations of the drug peddler, the two boxers will be called by the state police for questioning to verify the allegations. The other boxer is Ram Singh.

According to SSP Man Singh, who is looking in the matter, “We are investigating the matter. Some names have come up and we are looking into the allegations. The two boxers would be called for questioning as summons is imminent.”

Ludhiana Range DIG M.F. Faooqui, who also holds charge of Patiala Range, in a statement late Friday night said NRI Anoop Singh Kahlon “made certain disclosures concerning a few sportsmen, including boxers Vijender Singh and Ram Singh, which are being examined,” PTI reports.

Earlier in the evening, at a press conference at Fatehgarh Sahib, 45 km from here, Mr Farooqui had said that during the probe so far it emerged that there was “no direct involvement” of Vijender with the drug peddlers. Within a few hours of addressing the press conference, Mr Farooqui issue a brief statement. “Boxer Ram Singh was called by the Fatehgarh Sahib police to join investigation on March 8 but has not been arrested. Investigation is in progress and further details would be given on completion of investigation,” the DIG said.

The Punjab police recently caught Canada-based Anoop Singh Kahlon from a flat in Zirakpur, near Chandigarh, with 540 gms of heroin.

According to a Tribune report, which I posted yesterday, Anoop Singh Kahlon and his associate were caught with 26 kg of heroin.

Harjinder Singh – Man in Blue

http://www.asianage.com/india/india-olympic-boxer-denies-heroin-link-264

The Hindu – 26 kg heroin seized in Punjab

Chandigarh, March 8, 2013. Punjab Police on Thursday said it had busted an international drug-peddling nexus, with the arrest of a Canada-based Indian and his accomplice with 26 kg of expensive heroin in the state’s Fatehgarh Sahib district.

Senior police officers said that the heroin was worth Rs. 130 crore in the international market.

Fatehgarh Sahib district police chief H.S. Mann said that the police had busted a nexus between drug peddlers operating in India and western countries by nabbing its main kingpin, Anoop Singh Kahlon and his associate Kulwinder Singh.

He said that Mr. Kahlon was the main kingpin and they were used to smuggle the drugs to the various countries of Europe and North America. The duo was nabbed following a tip-off.

Police also recovered Rs. 8.94 lakh in cash, C$9,045, an Innova MUV and other foreign currency from Kahlon. The total currency was worth about Rs. 13.86 lakh, he added.

Police also recovered some weapons from their possession.

Mr. Mann said that Kahlon has been residing in Canada along with his family since 1995. A truck driver there, Mr. Kahlon had made a strong network of drug peddling not only in the U.S. and Canada but in some European countries.

He used to come to India frequently.

http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/other-states/26-kg-heroin-seized-in-punjab/article4487595.ece

The Tribune – UK Sikhs hope Cameron will regret Jallianwala

Prabhjot Singh, Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, February 18. Nearly half a million strong Sikh community in the UK, 56 per cent of which has British birth, hopes that Prime Minister David Cameron would regret the Jallianwala Bagh massacre, where hundreds of peacefully protesting Sikhs, including women and children, were done to death by British troops, during his visit to Amritsar on February 20.

Representatives of Sikh community in Great Britain have over the weeks submitted memoranda and held meetings with the ruling Conservatives with a hope that the British Prime Minister would also take up the issue of abolition of death penalty as India has witnessed two hangings in the past three months.

The Sikhs also want the British Prime Minister to reflect on the Operation Bluestar and the killing of innocent Sikhs in many parts of India in November 1984 as a fallout of the assassination of the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. A section of the Sikh community believes that to avoid embarrassment to the hosts, he may take up some of these issues privately with the Indian Prime Minister than making any public statements.

All these issues have been raised in a memorandum the Sikh Federation of the UK sent to David Cameron before he left for India on a three-day official tour.

The Conservatives are keen to win over the British Sikh community over its side.

Traditionally majority of Sikhs had been supporters of the Labour Party that was voted out of power in the last General Election.

The Sikh Federation has reminded Cameron that when in Opposition, the Conservatives had raised two separate Early Day Motions on the 25th anniversary of both the 1984 Operation Bluestar and the Sikh massacre of November 1984.

Going by reports in the British media, there is a strong feeling that Cameron during his visit to Jallianwala Bagh may convey British regret for what had been described as one of the major massacres of innocent people that took place on the Baisakhi Day of 1919.

Even Canada regretted the Kama Gata Maru episode in which a large number of Indians, mostly Sikhs, were killed.

The Canadian Government has also now raised even Kama Gata Maru memorials. Incidentally, both Canada and Great Britain have Conservatives in power.

Both the Canadian and British Governments, recognising great contribution of Sikh immigrants towards nation building, have been bowing backwards to appease them and win them over.

Of late while the Sikh community in Canada has won a foothold in federal politics by returning eight to nine Members of Parliament, their counterparts in England, however, are yet to become a strong political identity.

Early this month, large number of British MPs had gathered in the House of Commons to pay tributes to Lord Tarsem Singh King, the first Sikh to be honoured as a Lord in 1999.

India in Test cricket. [something seems to be missing from the article Harjinder Singh]

A couple of other Sikhs, including Ravi Bopara, have also played for England.

In Hockey, a number of Sikhs, including Sutinder and Kulbir, played for both England and Great Britain, in major hockey tournaments, including World Cup and Olympics. Though the first wave of Sikh immigrants to Great Britain were those who fought for the British in the first World War, most of the Sikhs who made Britain their home came from India while the rest moved from Africa (Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania) and Hong Kong.

Maharaja Duleep Singh still holds the official record of first Sikh settler in Great Britain in 1846. His statue in Butten Island is a major attraction for tourists in general and Sikhs in particular. The statue was unveiled in 1999.

The first Sikh Gurdwara in Britain came up at Putney in London in 1911. Now there are hundreds of gurdwaras, including one of the biggest at Southall.

A recent survey conducted by a British newspaper about different ethnicities and communities to have made Britain their home placed the Sikhs at number one, above Jews and Christians. Sikhs have the highest percentage, 82, for owning houses among all communities.

http://www.tribuneindia.com/2013/20130219/main3.htm

Dawn – SC discards Qadri’s petition challenging Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) reconstitution

Islamabad, 13 February 2013. The Supreme Court on Wednesday discarded the petition filed by Tehrik-i-Minhajul Quran (TMQ) chief, Dr Tahirul Qadri, seeking reconstitution of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), DawnNews reported.

The court said Qadri had failed to convince the bench over his petition and the intentions behind filing it.

A three-judge bench of the apex court, headed by Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry, heard the petition.

Earlier during the hearing, the court had asked the TMQ chief as to how his fundamental rights had been violated with the current makeup of the commission.

In his remarks, the chief justice had said a number of political parties were not part of the current parliament but they had not expressed any reservations on the ECP’s constitution.

The chief justice had also inquired as to how the TMQ chief had suddenly returned from Canada to question the commission’s organisation, adding that Qadri would have to convince the bench over his sincerity in the matter.

The bench had moreover questioned Qadri as to how his fundamental rights had been violated with the current makeup of the ECP.

The bench had questioned the petitioner as to when he was elected as a member of the National Assembly, responding to which Qadri had said he was elected as a representative from NA-127 in 2002.

The court had also asked the TMQ chief as to when he acquired Canadian citizenship and the chief justice had later remarked that Qadri did not identify himself as a Pakistani when abroad.

Responding to which, Qadri had said he believed that he was being tried for being a dual national and that his loyalty to Pakistan was being questioned.

Also during the hearing, Qadri had waved a photo of the oath-taking ceremony of the chief justice from former military ruler Pervez Musharraf. In response to which, the bench had barred the TMQ chief from continuing his arguments.

A series of dialogues had been exchanged between the bench and Qadri and the chief justice had said the cleric had ridiculed the court, adding that the petitioner’s intentions appeared to be malafide.

Moreover, Attorney General Irfan Qadir had argued that Qadri satisfied the requirements in terms of locus standi, adding that the petitioner’s intentions could not be questioned in the absence of evidence to support the claim of insincerity.

An argument had also ensued between the attorney general and the chief justice over whether Qadri’s plea to reconstitute the election commission months prior to the upcoming polls could be considered as sincere.

Earlier on Tuesday, the issue of locus standi (right to appear) was discussed by the apex court.

Qadri had apparently failed to establish that he had the right to knock at the doors of the Supreme Court and seek the ECP’s reconstitution.

“Dr Sahib our anxiety is that you are not an ordinary individual but a jurist, a scholar, rather Sheikhul Islam, and deliver lectures in over 90 countries to bring people to the folds of Islam, but you are showing allegiance not only to Queen Elizabeth but also her successors,” Chief Justice Iftikhar had said on Tuesday.

“This petition of yours asks us to think over these issues,” the chief justice had stated and had repeatedly asked how Qadri could attack a constitutional institution by approaching another institution when in a third country he was not a Pakistani.

http://dawn.com/2013/02/13/qadris-petition-over-ecp-reconstitution-sc-resumes-hearing/

The Tribune – SGPC flays beheading of Sikh in Pakistan

Tribune News Service

Amritsar, January 10. The SGPC has condemned the kidnapping and subsequent beheading of a Sikh, identified as Mohinder Singh, by militants in Pakistan, terming it as a “barbaric act.”. In a statement issued here today, SGPC president Avtar Singh Makkar has urged the Pakistan Government to ensure the safety of minorities while seeking adequate compensation for the next of the kin of the deceased.

“This is not the first instance of attack on Sikhs in Pakistan and the government there should take all necessary measures for the security of Sikhs,” Makkar said.

The Dal Khalsa has also criticised the killing. Mohinder Singh was reportedly kidnapped by a militant group from his shop in Tabbai village of Khyber on November 20 last year. Expressing concern about the safety of Sikhs in Pakistan’s tribal areas, party general secretary Dr Manjinder Singh demanded that the Pakistan Government should bring the culprits to book.

http://www.tribuneindia.com/2013/20130111/punjab.htm#9

US Sikhs seek stern action

Washington, January 10. Strongly condemning the murder of Sikh-Canadian woman Rajvinder Kaur Gill and the beheading of Mohinder Singh in Pakistan, the Sikh community in the US today demanded protection of minorities in that country.

In a statement, United Sikhs, a Sikh advocacy group, demanded that the Pakistan Government protect minorities and pay compensation to the families of the victims.

It also called on the Paklistan Government to secure the safety of all minorities. (PTI)

http://www.tribuneindia.com/2013/20130111/punjab.htm#10

The Tribune – Sukhbir’s relative missing in Pak dead; Canadian-Sikh was murdered soon after she reached Lahore in August: Police

Lahore, January 2. A Canadian woman of Indian-origin, Rajvindar Kaur Gill, also a distant relative of Punjab Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal, was killed and her body dumped into a canal by a man who owed her money, the Pakistan police investigating her disappearance since last August informed a court here today.

The police told the court that they had written to the Interpol to seek the arrest of the main accused, a German of Pakistani-origin, who had since fled to Germany. The case was taken up by Sukhbir Badal with Pakistan Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif during his visit here last year after Gill’s father sought his intervention.

City police chief Aslam Tareen told the court that Gill was killed soon after she arrived in the city. He said the police had arrested a suspect, Hafiz Shahzad Hussain, who had confessed that he had killed Rajvindar along with his cousin Shahid Ghazanfar. Hussain said Ghazanfar and Rajvindar had known each other for long. He had borrowed money from Rajvindar and promised to repay her when she came to Lahore.

“Ghazanfar offered me money if I helped him kill Rajvindar. I agreed. On August 25, we received her in Lahore. She stayed in a hotel for a few days (and) we picked her up on the pretext of striking a diamond deal with a local businessman,” Hussain said.

“We drove her to Sheikhupura (located 40 km from Lahore). On the way, Ghazanfar gave her tea mixed with sedatives to make her lose consciousness and then strangled her with a rope. We dumped the body in a canal off the Lahore-Sheikhupura road,” Hussain said. The police is yet to trace Gill’s body. (PTI)

http://www.tribuneindia.com/2013/20130103/main4.htm

The Tribune – Punjabi hospitality floors Canadian PM, wife

Prabhjot Singh, Tribune News Service

Anandpur Sahib, November 7. Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper tried to assuage the hurt feelings of the Indian Government by promising not to permit activities of Sikh separatists on the Canadian soil while appeasing the Sikh community by paying obeisance at Takht Sri Kesgarh Sahib before visiting Virasat-e-Khalsa here today.

“It has been a wonderful experience. I visited the Golden Temple during my last visit,” he said. Harper was accompanied by his wife Laureen and seven Indo-Canadian MPs, including Tim Uppal, the first turbaned federal minister outside India.

Harper today became the first elected head of a state to visit Virasat-e-Khalsa.

He has also become the first Prime Minister to visit two of the five Takhts —Amritsar and Sri Anandpur Sahib — of the Sikhs.

It has become conventional for Canadian premiers to visit the Golden Temple when they visit India. The only exception was Paul Martin, the last Liberal Prime Minister of Canada. He avoided visiting the Golden Temple because the controversial Bill on same sex marriages was before Canadian parliament at that time.

Though Stephen Harper also had neither Amritsar nor Anandpur Sahib on his itinerary, it was the Punjab Government that persuaded the visiting dignitary to visit Takht Sri Kesgarh Sahib and the much-publicised Virasat-e-Khalsa, a “modern wonder”, during his day-long visit to the city.

Congratulating US President Barack Obama on his re-election, he said the stand of the Canadian Government on preventing activities of Sikh separatists on the Canadian soil was well-known and acceptable to the Indian Government.

“We are committed not to permit any secessionist activities on our soil,” he added.

He did not respond to another question about delay in signing of the free-trade agreement with India. The Punjab Government and the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee rolled out red carpets for the Canadian premier and his wife. On arrival at the sanctum sanctorum, Punjab Health Minister Madan Mohan Mittal and Food Supplies Minister Adaish Partap Singh Kairon received them. Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal accompanied the Harpers from Chandigarh.

While Stephen Harper was presented a sword of honour besides a “siropa”, Jathedar of Takht Sri Kesgarh Sahib Tarlochan Singh presented “siropas” to other members of his entourage. Later, Dalmegh Singh, SGPC secretary, presented a copy of the Sikh Encyclopaedia and a painting of Takht Sri Kesgarh Sahib to the visiting VIPs.

Though the police had converted the Takht Kesgarh Sahib complex into a fortress, movement of pilgrims was also restricted, especially when the Canadian guests were inside the gurdwara. Harpers spent more than 90 minutes there. Harper and his entourage will leave for Bangalore tomorrow morning.

Though a strong business delegation accompanied him, no meetings could be organised between members of the visiting delegation and captains of the Punjab trade and industry. (With inputs from Arun Sharma).

Virasat-e-Khalsa mesmerises Harper

Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper, who after paying obeisance at Gurdwara Sri Takht Keshgarh Sahib, visited the Virasat-e-Khalsa and said it was a wonderful experience. Putting his comment in the visitors’ book, Harper said: “I am happy to be the first Prime Minister of any country to have paid a visit here.”

Business goes for a toss

Harper’s visit proved costly for shopkeepers around Gurdwara Sri Takht Keshgarh Sahib. As tight security was provided to the VVIP guest, the traders were told to keep their business establishments shut since Tuesday.

http://www.tribuneindia.com/2012/20121108/main2.htm