Today is the 100th anniversary of tragic end of the journey of 376 Indians mostly Sikhs led by Baba Gurdit Singh, who were turned away from Canada and forced to return to India. They were not allowed due to their race and ethnicity and Canadian government and the media expressed their bigoted views. The British Imperial Government saw the men on the ship as dangerous political agitators, and sent police to arrest Singh and others. While Singh escaped arrest, 19 men were killed in the firing. My father, Dr. Balwant Singh in Kolkata (Calcutta), struggled to have a memorial for this tragic incident built in the same spot where people were killed by the British Government. This was a national tragedy but long forgotten. He lobbied the state and the central government in India to build this site. Finally, he succeeded and had President of India come and inaugurate this over 30 years ago. My father is seen second from right and President Zail Singh on the left. Canadian Government recently apologized for this shameful incident and has given grant to build a befitting memorial at the very site in Vancouver, Canada. Every Sikh and Indian should know this important chapter of history of us in North America. kdsross/about-us/about/komagata-maru/ en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Komagata_Maru_incident cbc.ca/nxnw/featured-guests/2014/05/10/ali-kazimi-on-the-komagata-maru/ thehindu/news/national/centenary-commemoration-of-komagata-maru-launched/article6457898.ece
Posted on: Mon, 29 Sep 2014 21:04:12 +0000
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