Sikhs & Canada.. Whats Going On?

[Barjinder Singh]

what's interesting is that the murder of ten thousand sikhs in delhi after indira gandhi's death never damaged the image of hindus in india...or the murder of muslims in gujurat, or the demolition of baabri masjid, or the masacre at darbar sahib in 1984.

you know why?

because damaging reputations of a religious community is done by people in power. in america, american politicians have spent so much energy in depicting Muslims in a favorable light, even though all the hijackers were Muslim, and this has been proven, whereas, nothing has been concrete in Canada, yet the Sikh image in canada is suffereing from this terrible inicident.

It's very interesting to see that media and governments can damage who they WANT to damage and protect who they WANT to protect. It's kind of scary actually, and one of the reasons why Raj bina na dharam chale hai DHARAM BINA SAB DALE MALE HAI...

and for all the canadian agencies and the likes of Bolan who monitor this site, the above quote is by the tenth Nanak, Guru Gobind singh ji. It pertains to the fact that religions do not floursih without self-rule, and without religion, all are in a state of confusion and chaos.

peace.

very good observation by you,,,paaji...

[N30S1NGH]

I personally believe parmer was an agent of the RAW. Everything he did was to malign the name of Khalistan at the advantage of the Indian govt. Maybe he is still alive, changed his identity and gone undercover under the protection of the Indian state. Was his supposed dead body ever recovered and handed over to reltives?, in that supposed encounter with punjab police?

The book soft target also makes similar allegations that agents were used posing as Khalistani militants to discredit the movement.

Fully agree with you there.

Not only him, soft target book also shows how sardar ripudamin singh malik also took huge loan from state bank of india during the militancy times yet banned to get into india? makes you wonder shady areas in his life.

You can read soft target book regarding some of shocking revealtions on talvinder singh parmar, ie- bhai fauja singh ji's wife accused him for hijacking the peaceful movement. Soft target book has became such a reliable source for sikhs these days, oh off course panthic weekly the great wanna be sikh body /representative in western world will brush shady areas in parmar and malik's life they are pretty quick to use this book as reference yet hesitant to discuss some of fine issues in there because it challenges their beleif, they - panthic weekly guys quoting only stuff from there which suits their agenda, quote stuff on talvinder singh parmar from that book they wont because obviously that stuff is unreliable, same typical home made cook recipe articles just pick and chooose..that just shows their crediblity.

question i ask- who da hell gave them authority to be sikh voice representative and write contoversial, typical home made cook recipe articles on this matter ? Isnt it job of sarbar khalsa to decide who is shaheed and who is not shaheed?

http://www.panthic.org/news/131/ARTICLE/3250/2007-04-25.html

http://www.panthic.org/news/131/ARTICLE/3263/2007-05-02.html

I cannot beleive how our sikhs these days abused such a pavitar word like- shaheed. I like to just reminder our readers, what does it take to be shaheed.? Lets not abuse/over used this pavitar term.

~Reevaluting the real meaning of shaheedi~

First of all , let me be clear this topic is "nowhere an personal attack to personal individuals/jatha who have fought during the times of 1980's". However this topic touches a very fine mindset of an true militant who have got complete understanding of "dharam yudh maryada" within sikhism and examples of shaheedi set by our beloved Guru Sahibs- Sri Guru Arjan Dev Ji, Sri Guru Tegh Bahadur Ji.

I think every sikh with bibek buddhi can somewhat agree that not all sikh militants back in the time of 1980-1995 were 100 percent genuine and they were some who were driven by vengeance not "revenge". This two different terms, vengeance is state of mind where a person who is soo driven by it, that will use any "unjustified force" to eliminate the target, even though that unjustified force will kill innocent civilians. Whereas true sikh of sri guru gobind singh ji, will use only "justified force" to eliminate the target that means abort the missions if its turning out that there are innocent civilians on the way of target. In real world, this is painful, talk to any militants around the world, amount of pressure they get and planning they have spent to eliminate the target is over-whelming, hence in their dictionary if target (ruthless opressors/killer) is eliminated even in the cost of one-two innocent civilians is acceptable, but remember we are not just any joe blow sormaie/soldiers , we are given an beautiful concept of saint and sipahi, we are given ideals of khalsa, shaheedi, maryada in the dharam yudh. In the dharam yudh, singh under no circumstances doesnt not target - innocent civilians. Regardless how much pressure, how much planning is done to kill targets, singh should instantly boycatt/cancel the mission to target (ruthless killers/oppressors) after knowning it will cost an live of an innocent.

Classical example of such sikhs who have gravely failed to be sikhs of sri guru nanak dev ji let alone- sant-sipahi, or shaheeds is an clip below, fwd to 3 minute- http://media.cbc.ca:8080/ramgen/cbc.ca/new...wski_030909b.rm

Quote " There will be sikhs around, thats a price of our revolution".

Now its sikhs in the interview shown in the clip, i dont care where they from, which group they belong, they have every terrorist intent around that time in their mind to target anyone , have no regards for life of an innocent individuals, as sikhs in that clip said- after all this is the price of our revolution.

not targetting the jatha/personality but targetting the mindset of such fanatics, question to sangat , do they qualify to call themselves sant sipahi of sri guru gobind singh ji? if they were killed, do they qualify to be in realm of shaheedi which is very very pure concept laid down by examples of our guru's, sahibzadas, great warriors- baba deep singh ji, 40 mukhte, great mothers within khalsa panth. Do they qualify to have their names read next to great warriors like- baba deep singh??

Sikh need to be first sant (dya, dharam, sat, santokh, gyan) and then sipahi, its not other way around, only sipahihood in an person makes them demonic/tamoguni nothing else. You need santhood first and sipahi to anaylise each and every suitation in dharam yudh to questions- how much justified force need to be used? do assessment of dharam yudh, how is it impacting other innocent civilians life? how can one eliminate an target(ruthless killers/oppressors) soo pricesly that no innocent life is lost. And no these attributes of santhood first then sipahihood and questions and assesmment of dharam yudh is not only limited to only jathedar but each one of us who have desire to be shaheeds for the panth and Guru have this responsiblity.

Call this personal opnion since i dont have direct proof but fight for khalistan was failed because some in the movement

a) were just people, joe blow soramaie with terrorist intent use khalsa panth for their personal revenges ie- oh guy killed my family, i m going to kill his, all in the garb of kesh, dhara and all in garb of khalsa panth

b) gov't infiltration, nobody is ignoring that, however to use this govt inflitration on every stance is foolishness. to even be more foolish that to deny lack of acknowledgement that there is strategic failure.

c) lack of acknowledgement that there is such thing as "sikhs with terrorist intent, fanaticism within sikhs.

d) ignoring dharam yudh maryada the points are listed in sri dasam granth.

e) ignoring the concept of santhood (dya, dharam, sat, santokh, gyan) and then sipahi, its not other way around, only sipahihood in an person makes them demonic/tamoguni nothing else. You need santhood first and sipahi to anaylise each and every suitation in dharam yudh to questions- how much justified force need to be used? do assessment of dharam yudh, how is it impacting other innocent civilians life? how can one eliminate an target(ruthless killers/oppressors) soo pricesly that no innocent life is lost. And no these attributes of santhood first then sipahihood and questions and assesmment of dharam yudh is not only limited to only jathedar but each one of us who have desire to be shaheeds for the panth and Guru have this responsiblity.

Last but not least, yesterday i went to gurdwara, its my personal observation, but in the langar hall, all i can see pictures of "shaheeds" with no description of what they did, how genuine they were etc. This leads to great misconception if forgein reporter, media person walks in, he/she all they will see its guns, violence ruthless killers thats what they see , they need more information to change what they saw. This needs to be changed, description needs to be added, as for calling each and every sikh with gun in the langar hall - shaheed, i wouldnt go that far, i would hold my judgement until i study them, i think shaheed label itself just like- sant, bhramgyani, gyani, das is been over used and over abused.

Its about time we all re-evaulate our stance on concept of shaheedi laid by our beloved guru's via santhood-sipahihood, dharam yudh maryada lets not use pure term very freely,losely. Not saying to be hard core skeptic fanatic either but just have open mind, bring your own opnion after studying them.

[N30S1NGH]

check this out guys:

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/british-columbia/...bc-dosanjh.html

these soo called mp who call himself moderate sikh as he put it need a excuse to add more fuel to the fire. May be he got personal hostility towards bana wearing singhs because of beating he didnt deserve by sikh fanatics/thugs.

Yes our incompotent gurdwara community leaders shouldnt be using contoversial figures like - parmar as their hero in the sikh parade. But whats there to investigate? I dont think organizers who put up his pictures, their move was malicous but they are just misinformed on contoversial figures like parmar. i ask again whats there to investigate?

ehmi bas, apni janta hor koi kam ni, larri chalo-marri chalo. !

[raj_karega_khalsa]

babbarsingh's post on a similar topic...

Now I'll do my best to comment on the next issue. Ajaib Singh Bagri is an uncle of mine and I am extremely close to the family of Babbar Khalsa Founder Jathedar Talvinder Singh Babbar (Parmar). Jathedar Talvinder Singh was never found guilty in any court of law. He was acquited (as were Mr. Malik and Ajaib Singh Bagri) of all wrong doing in this heinous crime. I am a supporter of a Sikh homeland and vehemently against violence of any sort against INNOCENT people, just as these men are.

After 1984 I heard at least 100 people on various stages cry "blood for blood," definitely not the Sikh way to respond, but I am pretty sure that these people let their rage take control of them at this highly emotional time in our history.

The principles that all Sikhs hold dear to them are pretty much to live and let live. How can that happen when a country denies its own citizens of basic rights to ensure that it does not succumb to the Brahminic propaganda that is slowly surrounding it?

How can it be a crime in a democratic nation to show the picture of a Sikh Leader (Jathedar Talvinder Singh Babbar) that was tortured and killed in an Indian jail cell without ever being brought to trial? If he was in fact a wanted terrorist wanted on a murder charge, he was in their hands, why not put him on trial? The Punjab Police itself has admitted that he was in their custody, so when do we get those answers? When will his family learn the truth as to what happened to him and where his body ended up?

The Air India bombing was a tragedy. Innocent people dying all over the world is a tragedy. But coming on this website and wrongfully accusing a man that was acquited of all wrong doing, a man that served his people and died for it, and above all a man that is no longer here to defend himself is also a small tragedy in my eyes.

Most of our Singhs that fought in this era tried to make a difference in the lives of their people. What they had in their hearts only Waheguru will know.

One final point. Such a ruckus was caused over the picture of a man who was never convicted of any wrong doing...yet we had the pictures of Shaheed Bhai Beant Singh, Shaheed Bhai Satwant Singh (they assassinated the Prime Minister of India) and the pictures of Shaheed Bhai Sukhdev Singh Sukha and Shaheed Bhai Harjinder Singh Jinda (they assassinated the highest ranking General in the Indian Armed Forces), and that was not a problem???????????? Just makes me think if this is more of an issue for a few Canadian Journalists or the Indian Government.

[sikh supreme]

check this out guys:

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/british-columbia/...bc-dosanjh.html

these soo called mp who call himself moderate sikh as he put it need a excuse to add more fuel to the fire. May be he got personal hostility towards bana wearing singhs because of beating he didnt deserve by sikh fanatics/thugs.

Yes our incompotent gurdwara community leaders shouldnt be using contoversial figures like - parmar as their hero in the sikh parade. But whats there to investigate? I dont think organizers who put up his pictures, their move was malicous but they are just misinformed on contoversial figures like parmar. i ask again whats there to investigate?

ehmi bas, apni janta hor koi kam ni, larri chalo-marri chalo. !

That guy Dosanjh ..a moderate? lol lord have mercy. No he's another sell out lilly liberal coconut apna. The fool should look into the history of things and analyse information himself than rely on 3rd party or secondary information sources, as I suspect he has done.

But strange thing why all this hoo haa all of a sudden? is there new credible hard evidence of to prove Sikh militants did this? We all know that the canadian secruity agencies are in bed with Indian govt. They deserpately trying to cover this up and label it on "Sikh extremists" or "Khalistani's". When evidence and circumstances point towards a govt coverup.

Any how the more the racist right wing + pro-india media attacks the religous minorities and freedom movements the more people these groups attract. Because they have exposure and awareness, so people want to learn more and the balanced rational people start to support their causes. So let these zealots in the media carry on with their nonsense at the end of the day when things are balanced up, people will know what causes are just and what arent.

[sikh supreme]

babbarsingh's post on a similar topic...

Now I'll do my best to comment on the next issue. Ajaib Singh Bagri is an uncle of mine and I am extremely close to the family of Babbar Khalsa Founder Jathedar Talvinder Singh Babbar (Parmar). Jathedar Talvinder Singh was never found guilty in any court of law. He was acquited (as were Mr. Malik and Ajaib Singh Bagri) of all wrong doing in this heinous crime. I am a supporter of a Sikh homeland and vehemently against violence of any sort against INNOCENT people, just as these men are.

After 1984 I heard at least 100 people on various stages cry "blood for blood," definitely not the Sikh way to respond, but I am pretty sure that these people let their rage take control of them at this highly emotional time in our history.

The principles that all Sikhs hold dear to them are pretty much to live and let live. How can that happen when a country denies its own citizens of basic rights to ensure that it does not succumb to the Brahminic propaganda that is slowly surrounding it?

How can it be a crime in a democratic nation to show the picture of a Sikh Leader (Jathedar Talvinder Singh Babbar) that was tortured and killed in an Indian jail cell without ever being brought to trial? If he was in fact a wanted terrorist wanted on a murder charge, he was in their hands, why not put him on trial? The Punjab Police itself has admitted that he was in their custody, so when do we get those answers? When will his family learn the truth as to what happened to him and where his body ended up?

The Air India bombing was a tragedy. Innocent people dying all over the world is a tragedy. But coming on this website and wrongfully accusing a man that was acquited of all wrong doing, a man that served his people and died for it, and above all a man that is no longer here to defend himself is also a small tragedy in my eyes.

Most of our Singhs that fought in this era tried to make a difference in the lives of their people. What they had in their hearts only Waheguru will know.

One final point. Such a ruckus was caused over the picture of a man who was never convicted of any wrong doing...yet we had the pictures of Shaheed Bhai Beant Singh, Shaheed Bhai Satwant Singh (they assassinated the Prime Minister of India) and the pictures of Shaheed Bhai Sukhdev Singh Sukha and Shaheed Bhai Harjinder Singh Jinda (they assassinated the highest ranking General in the Indian Armed Forces), and that was not a problem???????????? Just makes me think if this is more of an issue for a few Canadian Journalists or the Indian Government.

You make valid points about peoples emotions after the attack on golden temple, though again RAW indian agents have inflitrated the khalistan movement long before the indian govt attackted darbar sahib. Remember the punjab black cats, fake encounter killings of innocents while their supposed targets are still alive. Theirs alot of smoke the enemy create, deception is one tool the govt sponsered terrorists use they use to murderous ruthless effientcy. So with regards to your uncle or people like parmer, all I can say is we got to analyse the facts and see the truth from the falsehood.

I suggest you get hold of that video that was shown on youtube, it shows alot of interesting information. But the RAW has managed to have it removed from youtube... which shows how efficent they are at media management. They have tenticles in every department like an venonmous spider. IF western govt's DONT take action against them then theres only one conclusion people can make. And that is that western govt's are corrupt as the Indians and therefore in collusion with them. That would mean they no credibility to reason or stop its citizens who support pro-independance groups aboard, when their own moral compass is corrupt.

[fortunate]

for those who are saying, the sikhs reputation in Canada itself has been jeopardized...i disagree...living in Canada i think that people here are more open-minded...they are educated well enough to make their own decisions....but as for the Air India plane it self......if you think about it.....the indian govt is behind it...the Canadian courts have already failed to "lock away" the accused due to lack of evidence....but now if you think about it...Canada cannot charge anyone without key evidence...and this evidence is not there since the Indian govt was behind it..and canada cannot accuse the Indian govt..since they are becoming the new economic superpower and if they accuse India...Canada will loose major trading ties with India.

[N30S1NGH]

for those who are saying, the sikhs reputation in Canada itself has been jeopardized...i disagree...living in Canada i think that people here are more open-minded...they are educated well enough to make their own decisions....but as for the Air India plane it self......if you think about it.....the indian govt is behind it...the Canadian courts have already failed to "lock away" the accused due to lack of evidence....but now if you think about it...Canada cannot charge anyone without key evidence...and this evidence is not there since the Indian govt was behind it..and canada cannot accuse the Indian govt..since they are becoming the new economic superpower and if they accuse India...Canada will loose major trading ties with India.

If Canada is indeed afraid to let out truth because they will loose major trading ties with India, how come they are quite outspoken against human right abuses in China and host baba dalai lama all the time despite of major outrage from China. I think by looking at stats, canada has major tradies ties with china than India.

something to ponder upon?

[Singh, Mahan]

This article is from the sikhchic.com

http://www.sikhchic.com/article-detail.php?id=190&cat=12

The Missing Witnesses

by T. SHER SINGH

The man who was Director of Security and Intelligence for the Government of Canada when the Air India murders occurred on June 23, 1985, threw a bombshell of his own recently at the inquiry currently being led by Retired Supreme Court of Canada Justice, John Major.

He testified under oath that he became aware of a bomb-plot to blow up an Air India flight at least five days prior to the actual tragedy, and promptly conveyed the information to the powers at the RCMP - who, at that point, confirmed that they already knew about it.

The issue cannot be shrugged off lightly: it's been raised by none other than one who is now the Queen's Representative - The Honourable James K. Bartleman, Lieutenant Governor of Ontario.

The testimony is startling, particularly since it has surfaced for the first time 22 years after the tragedy. The shock is not because Bartleman did not make it public prior to this date, but because the RCMP has sat on this information all along and chosen to keep it hidden. The simple question is, "Why?"

We also need a full and credible response from the RCMP as to why it failed to act on such information between June 18 and 23 in 1985.

There have been other, equally shocking revelations, since then. An officer from the Quebec Provincial Police, for example, has testified - also bringing this to light for the first time in 22 years, and directly contradicting the RCMP position as stated earlier under oath - that the Air India flight was given the clearance by the RCMP to take off from Montreal early, even though the bomb-sniffing dogs had yet to inspect the plane. He added that the RCMP officers then in charge knew that the canine squad had already been summoned and was but a few minutes away.

Concerns should now be heightened over the fact that there is yet more, equally startling information - this one is already part of the public record - which mysteriously continues to be evaded and avoided, investigation after investigation, inquiry after inquiry, year after year.

The latest revelations, added to an already mounting list of questions that remain unsatisfactorily answered by the RCMP, raise the level of concern to a crescendo.

Remember, that a large body of evidence pertaining to the bombing was actually destroyed by our intelligence services during the years following the crime - long before the trial. Evidence destroyed? By the police?

Remember, that it took the RCMP more than a decade - a decade! - before it posted its first reward for information pertaining to the crime. That is, after the key suspect, Talwinder Parmar, had been killed while in "third-party" custody in India.

Remember, the RCMP has, through the decades since 1985, vehemently and consistently resisted the holding of any public inquiry into the crime.

Bartleman's testimony, I suggest, adds a piece to the puzzle. But, in doing so, it also points to another piece of the puzzle for which, I believe, the time has come to address at the inquiry and to give a full and honest airing, if we are ever to get to the truth.

I believe it is time to ask some tough questions. Let me explain:

David Kilgour, like Bartleman, is no ordinary Canadian. He began his career as a Crown Attorney and then, as one of Canada's longest-serving Members of Parliament (25 years), he had the distinction of having served as cabinet minister in Ottawa in both Conservative and Liberal governments. It goes without saying that he is a greatly respected politician, and continues to be widely acclaimed for his integrity and professionalism.

In 1994, Prentice Hall Canada Inc published a book by him entitled Betrayal: The Spy Canada Abandoned. [This 254-page meticulously-detailed biography can be googled.]

It is about a "KGB-trained Polish intelligence agent" who found himself employed by the RCMP and the CSIS in doing some unsavoury things for them in the mid-1980s.

Kilgour, then Federal MP for Edmonton Southeast, became interested and involved when this spy - his name is Ryszard Paszkowski - was being unceremoniously deported from Canada, at the vehement behest of the RCMP and the CSIS. They wanted him out, at any cost. He begged to stay, fearing for his life if he was sent back to Europe - because he had done some bad stuff during his strange and multi-faceted career (including a hijacking).

Canada claimed it owed him nothing. Paszkowski claimed he had done some nasty things for Canada, and that the least he was owed was sanctuary. Things came to a head before the Federal Court of Canada, where Paszkowski - fighting for his life, according to him - cited a string of examples of yeoman service done by him for the Canadian authorities. The Court heard all the parties ... scrupulously scrutinized, and then accepted the facts presented by Paszkowski, and finally, granted him asylum. He now lives in Canada, despite the continued discomfort of the RCMP, CSIS, et al.

Now here's where both Kilgour and Paszkowski become relevant - nay, crucial - to the Air India story.

One of the examples of the services provided by Paszkowski to our agents, as presented to the Federal Court, is described in fine detail in Kilgour's book. Here's a bit of the story, as it pertains to the topic in question:

Paszkowski was interviewed by an RCMP officer at the Canadian Embassy in Rome in 1984. Shortly thereafter, he was recruited as a spy, given the name "Robert Fisher" and provided an expedited immigration visa to Canada on November 14, 1984.

Robert Fisher was assigned a number of tasks during the months that followed. In 1986, he was flown to Rome and directed to meet a Dr Di Marco. Two "Sikhs wearing traditional turbans", an Italian and a German were also present.

In Betrayal: The Spy Canada Abandoned, Kilgour describes in vivid detail what happened:

"The latter [German] chaired the meeting and greeted them in English as all of them spoke the language with differing levels of fluency. The German spoke of the need for international co-operation and how important the mission was for each of their respective governments. He stressed that the group must work closely together. "Some of the tasks," he said, "might appear strange or even incomprehensible to you. Don't worry about that. Let it be the concern of those who sent you here. Your role is to carry out orders to the letter without asking questions." Everyone sat quietly and listened intently. "The job at hand is with the use of explosives to blow up an Air-India plane in Europe. Lives will be lost but we must not think about that. There are more important matters involved. You will stay in your hotels and wait for further details, which are presently being worked on. Each of you will be supplied with documents allowing you to move freely in Europe, weapons, explosives, money, and detailed instructions. I will meet with each of you personally to supply you with all of these. Wait for me and be prepared for action at any time ...

"As Paszkowski was returning to his hotel, his mind was full of what he had just heard. He was to blow up a plane and cause people to die. He started to pull all the threads together. He remembered Maduck [CSIS] stressing the government of Canada's troubles with its Sikh community and that it would be useful to discredit Canadian Sikhs generally. The Air India catastrophe off Ireland, which had killed more than 300 passengers, mostly Canadians, had occurred the previous year. Would this simultaneously do a large favour for the government of India and subdue the Canadian Sikh community as the prime suspects in the Air India crash? It seemed very clear that high-ranking people in these countries and probably others were involved.

"The governments of Canada, India, and Italy, or perhaps rogue branches of each, acting in concert, had decided on this preposterous mission and recruited agents like himself to help carry it out. There was no concern for human life; only political objectives mattered. There were two Sikhs in the group, but who knew their real identity or from which side they really came? There were many other unknown factors to know about the mission, but Paszkowski was certain he wanted none of it.

"He wondered if Maduck or Beech [his CSIS handlers] had known more about this mission. Was it only the Secretary of State, Joe Clark, and high ranking officials at CSIS who knew the full details?"

[Excerpts from Betrayal by David Kilgour, Ch. 9]

According to Kilgour's book, and the evidence presented to the Federal Court, Paszkowski declined to be involved in the plot: he found it too macabre, even for him and even allowing for the vagaries of his "profession".

Much of the rest of the book outlines his trials and tribulations in trying to prevent the Canadian authorities from silencing him thereafter.

Incidentally, one of the RCMP officers then allegedly involved in trying to muzzle Paszkowski was a certain Inspector G. Zaccardelli! [who was later elevated to Chief Commissioner of the RCMP, but then, still later, forced to resign under a cloud of allegations of having lied under oath.]

Now, it is true that all of these "facts" do not allege any involvement in the 1985 tragedy. And, no doubt, these "facts" have only been tested in the context of Paszkowski's immigration troubles.

But here are some further relevant facts: The RCMP has a long history of such operations. Anyone who is old enough to remember the McDonald Commission into RCMP activities in Quebec thirty years ago, will see the connection - the force was then found to have committed serious crimes, and made it look like the perpetrators were members of the Parti Quebecois! [The CSIS, Canada's new intelligence agency, was created as a result.]

And the fact is that a string of very serious questions remain unanswered vis-à-vis Air India. They all involve the role of our intelligence and security agencies.

How could there possibly be a proper inquiry without hearing David Kilgour, Ryszard Paszkowski, Giuliano Zaccardelli ... and, of course, former Prime Minister Joe Clark, who was Canada's External Affairs Minister during the material times. Recall how desperately and deftly the latter avoided being questioned about any Sikh-Canadian matters, during public hearings held in the years immediately following the Air India tragedy?

There may or may not be any meat to Paszkowski's allegations. There may or may not be any nexus between the plot he was dragged into and the actual bombing that preceded it.

But isn't that what inquiries are for? Who will decide whether these questions need to be canvassed? The RCMP?

I fear if these four gentlemen are not called as witnesses, any conclusions arrived at by Mr Justice Major, at the end of the day, will remain unsatisfactory.

.

[T. Sher Singh served as a member of the Ontario Police Commission between 1990 and 1993.]

.

Conversation about this article

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1: BSA (Toronto, Canada), May 14, 2007, 1:12 PM.

An article that should be mandatorily published in every newspaper in Canada and India - a well-written peice of investigative and analytical journalism.

2: Jagdeep Singh (London, England), May 14, 2007, 5:13 PM.

I fear that while we address the machinations of murky, rogue intelligence agencies and their schemes, we should be careful not to let it divert us from recognizing that there were (and still are) some individuals and bodies within our community with dark intents. If the Canadian authorities have to introspect and get to the bottom of what they did or failed to do, and address the wrongs committed in their name, an honest audit within our community, including of the rhetoric used and the denial of some extremism that flourished within us, is also required.

3: Manpreet Singh (Surrey, Canada), May 15, 2007, 4:18 AM.

One cannot know the full extent of extremism in the community without a full airing of the role played by the RCMP, CSIS, RAW and CIA agencies in the Air India tragedy. True, there have been members of the community involved - but we also need to know about their relationship with these groups, and whether they were independent players or mere pawns in an overall strategy to discredit the community and quell the separatist movement in India.

4: Jagdeep Singh (London, England), May 15, 2007, 7:48 AM.

While we await the truth and the full story to emerge from the Air India inquiry, we need to continue to unequivocally condemn and excommunicate all of those in the community who flirt with and use the rhetoric of violence, who intimidate dissenters, who cling to an anti-democratic ideology, who promote hatred.

5: Sarbjit Singh (Los Angeles, USA), May 15, 2007, 4:15 PM.

The so-called biggest democracy in the world - India - is where humans rights are violated every single day by those whose mandate it is to protect them. Illegal cremations of thousands of innocent Sikhs, some as young as 9 years old, killed by the police or under their watchful eyes; and then hurriedly and secretly cremated by police, without notifying the families! Where is the justice for them? It's been more then 20 years. India needs to look deep within itself and find out why its people are driven, over and over again, into senseless violence.

6: Nicola Mooney & Dildeep Singh Dhillon (Toronto, Canada), May 15, 2007, 5:31 PM.

This piece expresses very well the sense of incredulity that has been present in our household while the most recent news on Air India has unfolded in the past few weeks. The mention of Kilgour's book gives some context to the various quietly-expressed conspiracy theories regarding government plots to malign Sikhs that we have heard with regard to Air India over the years. While these theories have largely been directed at India, it is worrisome to contemplate a possible Canadian role in such events.

7: Jagdeep Singh (London, England), May 15, 2007, 5:42 PM.

The human rights record of India is separate from the issue of the Air India bombing and the elements of extremism within the community. The people on board the Air India flight, which included 80 children, were not responsible for what happened in India. Just because India has a poor human rights record is no reason not to get to the truth of what happened in 1985, or to address the menace of extremism. Just because India does not address its murky past is no reason for Canada not too. In fact it is a sign of the maturity of Canadian society that it can deal with these issues in contrast to the Indian state. Sikhs should be brave and honest enough to also address issues of extremism amongst us, which also constitute a threat to us all.

8: Pushproop Singh (Brampton, Canada), May 15, 2007, 10:09 PM.

It is very sad and tragic that the 300+ innocent lives could not be saved. If the agencies had acted more responsibly and seriously, this dark tragedy could've been prevented. Here, I would also like point out that at least the Canadian government is trying, albeit belatedly and reluctantly and half-heartedly, to bring out the truth. The Indian government, on the other hand, is yet to face and acknowledge the well-planned pogroms in which thousands of innocent citizens and taxpayers across the country, including in its very capital, were murdered in cold blood - with the full complicity of its politicians, the police, etc. In fact, some of the culprits became cabinet ministers in the country's federal government!

9: Sarbjit Singh (Los Angeles, USA), May 15, 2007, 11:35 PM.

Let's face it: our lives are tied to India with an umbilical cord. And so is the whole saga of the Air India tragedy. It's purely an Indian issue; those people who ever did this were obviously affected by what happened in Punjab and the rest of India in 1984. Sad thing is that the folks who are born in the UK/USA/Canada do not know the full details of the horrors of 1984 because foreigners were not allowed into Punjab for a long time. And who can believe what we were told by the state-controlled media? I truly feel sorry for the victims. If we're really looking to solve the puzzle, we'll have to start in India ...

10: Satvinder Singh (London, England), May 16, 2007, 5:57 AM.

We are not unique, and need not carry any collective guilt if we do have "some individuals and bodies" amongst us "with dark intents". Show me a community that doesn't. But before we go pointing fingers at those who have gone mad, let's first look at those who drove them to madness. It would be a travesty if we only pre-occupy ourselves with the former, while letting the latter go scot free.

11: Harinder (Pune, India), May 16, 2007, 6:29 AM.

The tale of Harishchandra, the ancient Indian king of legend and lore, teaches us of the absolute importance of truth in the lives of those who enjoy the privilege of power over others. Without it, it is unrealistic to expect order and justice to prevail in society.

12: Sukhminder Singh (London, England), May 16, 2007, 6:32 AM.

After reading the article, you can't help feeling a little skeptical now about anything the RCMP says. Latest News: "RCMP dogs busy training weekend of Air India", Updated Tuesday, May 15 2007, Canadian Press - OTTAWA - No bomb-sniffing dog was on duty in Toronto the weekend of the 1985 Air India bombing because the RCMP had sent every such canine it had on a training course, a public inquiry has heard. That left the baggage loaded onto the ill-fated Flight 182 to be screened by an electronic detector that had failed a test conducted six months earlier. ...

13: Gurteg Singh (New York, USA), May 16, 2007, 10:40 PM.

It is most frustrating to watch the Canadian media defaming Sikhs every day under the guise of finding the truth about Air India tragedy, while Sikh organizations remain silent. Why aren't the facts outlined in this article not being presented by a Sikh organization to the inquiry? Furthermore, no one has ever questioned why Talwinder Parmar, who is accused as the chief conspirator in this bombing, was self-admittedly killed by the Indians while in their custody, almost 6-7 years after this event? Why would they eliminate a man who was allegedly the chief conspirator in blowing up its national carrier? Why wouldn't they cooperate with the Canadian Government and try and find out about his fellow conspirators in the crime and bring them to justice? It's become so convenient to blame everything on this man, who - there is evidence to indicate - may even himself have been in the employ of some intelligence agencies, and has now been silenced. Is there a chance that his elimination has helped turn the spotlight away from the real perpetrators of the crime. It has come to light just today that the security chief for Air India at the airport, a certain Mr. D'Souza, cleared the premature take-off of the doomed flight. I urge all Sikh-Canadian organizations to immediately approach the John Major Inquiry and demand that these questions be addressed, and the missing witnesses be called.

14: Sonu S. K. (San Diego, USA), May 17, 2007, 4:36 PM.

The measure of a democracy is in its pursuit of justice for the people. India's apathy towards 1984+ is just a slap in the face for all of us, and is the mere tip of the iceberg. There are enormous resources in place in India today to erase the Sikh identity through miseducation, drugs, booze, etc. If Sikhs deem themselves distinct, then we should act like it, and demand better leadership.

[Bored]

u jus need to b aware of the ignorance out there, ppl who are gonna judge sikhs based on wat happend with air india etc dont need attention, jus need to b educated

those folks u dont need to worri for

we can all jus start hating on white ppl cuz of wat hitler(white guy) did to jews.

we can start hating muslim for wat some muslims did on 9/11

and i can go on

dont bring ur level down to a ignorant one.