Canada High Commission Calls Indian Border Security Force "Notoriously Violent Paramilitary Unit" Responsible Of 'War Crimes In India'

[JagtarSinghKhalsa]

Canada High Comm dubs BSF 'notorious force'

Updated on Saturday, May 22, 2010, 00:06 IST

Zeenews Bureau

Chandigarh: A retired Border Security Force (BSF) trooper was denied a Canadian visa after a diplomat accused the paramilitary force of "war crimes" and being a "notoriously violent force".

In a communication to Fateh Singh Pandher, a New Delhi-based Canadian High Commission diplomat has described the BSF as a "notoriously violent paramilitary unit" which is "responsible for war crimes in India".

When contacted, External Affairs Ministry spokesman Vishnu Prakash said, "the matter has come to the attention of MEA and it has been appropriately taken up with the Canadian side."

"The MHA received a representation from the BSF. We have sent that representation along with our views to the MEA for further action," a Home Ministry spokesman said.

The communication, sent to the trooper based in Siar village, 25 km from Punjab's industrial city of Ludhiana, accused him of not only working with "a unit engaged in systematic attacks on civilians" but also of not providing any evidence in his visa application "disassociating" himself from the force.

Pandher, 60, who retired 10 years ago, told IANS: "By writing such things to me to reject my visa, the Canadian High Commission has not attacked me but this is an attack on my country and my force.

"They accused me of being a member of the BSF in a way that sounded as if I had committed some sin. Even in the interview in April 2009, I was asked irrelevant questions about the BSF. They even accused the BSF of targeting a particular community for attacks and rapes."

An upset Pandher said that he told the Canadian diplomat that the BSF never committed atrocities on innocent people and did not target any particular community since the force itself had people from all religions.

"But the official refused to agree with any of my comments," Pandher told IANS.

According to Pandher, he had applied for an immigration visa in 2005 and had completed all the paperwork. His medical tests were done in 2008 and he was called for a personal interview in April 2009.

"On Dec 8, 2009, I was sent this letter from the high commission in New Delhi levelling allegations against the BSF," Pandher, whose daughter is settled in Edmonton town in Canada, said.

The BSF, a paramilitary force for guarding India's borders, has been stationed in the trouble-torn Jammu and Kashmir state for a number of years.

Canada is home to a large number of immigrants from India.

In recent years, Canada has been promoting immigration and tourism from Punjab and has even set up a consulate in Chandigarh to handle the rush of cases from the state.

Hundreds of immigration agencies operate out of Punjab and Chandigarh to help people, particularly youth, to migrate to Canada and other western countries.

-IANS

http://www.zeenews.com/news628380.html

[JagtarSinghKhalsa]

Indian media response:

Why Canada still backs terror in India?

By P. Chacko Joseph

May 23rd, 2010

Recently Canadian High Commission in New Delhi dubbed the Indian Border Security Force (BSF) as a “notoriously violent paramilitary unit stationed in sensitive areas, attacking civilians and torturing suspected criminals.” Its funny to hear the so called “western experts’” commenting on a “generation of Pakistanis being bought up in radical Islamic foundations,” as their own citizens have not shaken up the cold war era mentality.

US, UK, Canada especially and the Western European nations have been in the forefront of radicalizing religions around the world. They gave direct and indirect diplomatic, moral and material support to radical organizations around the world. These countries have educated their population with selective radicalization. Even as they try to hold high moral grounds with respect to radical Islam, these countries have not been able to shake up their own radicalization.

Even today, Canada houses majority of the Sikh Terrorist base. The selective radicalism practiced by these western diplomatic and leadership are not just hurting India and other victim countries. The terrorist have come home to roost and western countries struggle to wrestle with them. At the same time, due to high moral grounds, these countries fail to change themselves. Look at their attitudes. They want Pakistan to fight selective terrorism. They allow Pakistan to keep the India specific terrorism while asking it to finish the terror now “pissing on them.” They don’t realize that there is no uni directional terror. Classic case is the New York Terror plot, where the Indian specific terrorist tried to strike US.

The Sikh terror has now percolated Canadian parliament. The Canadian politicians like Gordon Campbell, Dianne Watts, Penny Priddy, and various other federal and provincial politicians openly support these terrorist. The “other” politicians do not speak out because they want votes. Being Anti-India is a way of life in Canada, just like Pakistan. The only difference is that its White Mans terror, it is different and it’s sacred. We can understand that Pakistanis, who are a mix of Barbaric Islamic raiders and Indians, having a little connection with Islam and Islamic push towards India. But, what about White Canadians? What have they got to do with it? You can see how bad is the Canadian radicalization of its own country. The incident of High Commission in New Delhi is a manifestation of exactly that.

It’s true for US and UK and Western European nations too. They have terror MP’s right in their parliaments, terror diplomats in their foreign offices, terror state / home departments and the list goes on.

While US, UK, Canada and western nation continue to scour Afghanistan to hunt terrorist, terror sits at home.

http://frontierindia.net/wa/why-canada-still-backs-terror-in-india/823/

[JagtarSinghKhalsa]

Another Indian Express report:

Canada denied visa to Punjab cop, cited ‘crime against humanity’

Aman Sood Posted online: Fri May 28 2010, 00:15 hrs

Patiala : The Canadian embassy in India twice denied a visa to a decorated, senior police officer only because he had served in areas where counter-insurgency operations had been carried out.

There were reasonable grounds to believe that he was fully aware of the “widespread and systematic” extra-judicial killings and disappearances of suspected Sikh militants at the hands of the police, the embassy said while rejecting the application of Ranbir Singh Khatra, now Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP), Patiala.

Khatra had served in Tarn Taran, Mansa and Batala in Amritsar range. The Indian Express had reported in its May 26 edition that several Punjab Police officers including Khatra and Additional D-G (Crime) Rajan Gupta had been denied visas by Canada for their alleged involvement in human rights abuses.

Some other Punjab Police personnel, including Superintendents of Police Devinder Singh and Gurdeep Singh Pannu, and a Head Constable were asked to furnish certificates from the government saying they had not violated human rights, along with a list of all the positions they had held over the past 15 years.

The controversy over Canada refusing visas to Indian police and security forces personnel came to light after it emerged last week that Ottawa had rejected the application of Fateh Singh Pandher, a former constable who retired from the BSF in 2000 and is now in his late sixties, on the grounds of his association with a “notoriously violent paramilitary unit engaged in systematic attacks on civilians”.

It subsequently emerged that Canada had also denied visas to retired and serving personnel of the Intelligence Bureau, and several police officers, all on similar grounds. The Home Ministry has pressed the External Affairs Ministry to take up the issue with Ottawa.

Patiala SSP Khatra received the President’s Police Medal for Gallantry in 1993, and has a clean track record of service. He was denied visas by Canada in 2008 and 2009. On the first occasion, Khatra had wanted to go to Canada on a “personal visit”; on the second occasion, to participate in the golf event of the World Police and Fire Games in British Columbia, scheduled to be held from July 31 to August 9 of that year. He had earlier won the runners-up trophy at the All India Police Golf Tournament.

In a letter to Khatra signed by embassy vice-counsel Sharon Hogan, Canada said, “You are at the very least willfully blind to the crime against humanity committed by the Punjab police in Amritsar district. During the investigation, arrest and interrogation, while your posting, you may have been directly involved or at the very least help the increase the effectiveness of Punjab police in Amritsar district at the time when large number of police forces in the area was involved in commission of crime against humanity.

“Also, the government made little progress in holding hundreds of police and security officials accountable for serious human rights abuses committed during the Punjab counter-insurgency operations despite the presence of a Special Investigating Commission,” the letter added.

Khatra said it was the prerogative of the Canadian government to grant him a visa, but disagreed strongly with the contents of the letter.

“I am proud to have contributed to keeping peace in the region as a part of Punjab Police in that period, and I felt really bad that at a time when the world is fighting terrorism, Canada is targeting us — people who actually fought terrorism,” Khatra said. “There is no case against me, nor have I ever been convicted by any court of law, so how can they make such comments?”

http://www.indianexpress.com/news/Canada-denied-visa-to-Punjab-cop--cited--crime-against-humanity-/624693

[Jai Tegang!]

Very surprising indeed. Recent times India has been pursuing the Canadian gov to essetially vilify SIkh sovereignty. Last thing you would expect is them calling out India on its black deeds.

Have to to say, very strong stance indeed. I was always under the impression that Canadian establishment was oblivous to the crimes committed against us.

I hope this news spreads across Canada...WSO drum it up please.

[lsingh]

Europe and maybe the USA also have laws to prevent human rights violators from entering their countries.With Canada having started things off these countries may follow. The Indian authorities seem very embarressed with their attacks on Canda. I see Indian communist Dosangh is attacking Canada the country which he supposed to represent or is his loyalty to India?

[NavtejS]

http://www.sikhsangat.com/index.php?/topic/53310-politicians-repudiate-canadian-values-over-india/