Close X
Monday, November 25, 2024
ADVT 
National

Canadian PM, Politicians Must Not Attend Events Glorifying Militants: Ujjal Dosanjh

IANS, 22 Feb, 2018 01:19 PM
    Reacting to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s assurance to Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh to curb Sikh separatists in Canada, former Canadian health minister Ujjal Dosanjh has said that politicians in this country have failed to appreciate India’s deep sensitivities about Khalistani activities.
     
     
    “India is very sensitive about this issue because that country was partitioned in 1947 and 14 million people died. Indians will under no circumstances allow another division of their country.
     
     
    “Canadian politicians, including the Prime Minister, must start appreciating India’s deep sensitivities on this issue,” said Dosanjh, who was the first person of colour to become Premier (equal to Chief Minister) in Canada in 2000 when he was elected to the post in British Columbia.
     
     
    He said Canadian politicians, including Trudeau, had been publicly associating with separatists for a long time without any backlash from India.
     
     
    “There has been no blowback from India till now despite Canadian politicians going to parades, processions and events where posters of Air India bomber Talwinder Singh Parmar and other militants are displayed and they are celebrated as heroes.
     
     
    “Our Prime Minister and politicians have been taking part in these events, but India has been silently watching this for many years. I hope that Trudeau and others start appreciating India’s worries,” said Dosanjh.
     
     
    The former Canadian minister said Prime Minister Narendra Modi reportedly took Trudeau aside at Davos and told him that Khalistani activities in Canada were becoming a serious issue.
     
     
     
     
    He said that is why Trudeau’s two ministers, Harjit Sajjan and Amarjeet Sohi, made the statement that they had nothing to do with Khalistan just before their departure for India.
     
     
    He said if Canadian politicians stopped pandering to separatists and going to their events, the Khalistan movement would die quickly.
     
     
    Dosanjh said Trudeau’s statements about India’s unity would be meaningless if politicians kept going to the events where militants were glorified.
     
     
    “I cannot stop anyone from glorifying anyone, but what I can do is stop going to such events. This is what Trudeau and other politicians should do now. Or they should insist that they will not attend such events if the killers of innocent people are glorified.”
     
     
    If Canadian politicians wanted to have good relations with India, they had to genuinely support the idea of a united India, Dosanjh said.
    He also blamed India for not framing the issue properly to force Canada to act.
     
     
     
     
    Trudeau is currently in India on an eight-day visit. 

    MORE National ARTICLES

    Harjit Sajjan Asks Justin Trudeau To Meet Punjab CM Who Accused Canada Of Sikh Separatist Sympathies

    Harjit Sajjan Asks Justin Trudeau To Meet Punjab CM Who Accused Canada Of Sikh Separatist Sympathies
    At the request of Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan — who was snubbed by Singh when Sajjan visited India last April — Canada's high commissioner was dispatched to set up a meeting with Singh, Trudeau and Sajjan later this week.

    Harjit Sajjan Asks Justin Trudeau To Meet Punjab CM Who Accused Canada Of Sikh Separatist Sympathies

    PICS: Justin Trudeau Visits India's Famed Taj Mahal With Family In Tow

    PICS: Justin Trudeau Visits India's Famed Taj Mahal With Family In Tow
    Prime Minister Justin Trudeau began the first full day of his week-long trip to India by taking a tour of the famed Taj Mahal, followed by a visit to an elephant rescue sanctuary north of Agra.

    PICS: Justin Trudeau Visits India's Famed Taj Mahal With Family In Tow

    SEE PICS: Justin Trudeau's Son Hadrien Trudeau Arrives To Steal The Show On Indian Social Media

    SEE PICS: Justin Trudeau's Son Hadrien Trudeau Arrives To Steal The Show On Indian Social Media
    Hadrien Did His Best To Steal The Show, Making Off Down The Red Carpet With The Flowers Handed To His Father By An Indian Official, Leaving The Rest Of His Family To Manage The Receiving Line.

    SEE PICS: Justin Trudeau's Son Hadrien Trudeau Arrives To Steal The Show On Indian Social Media

    Namaste India: Justin Trudeau Arrives In New Delhi With Family For Week-Long State Visit

    Namaste India: Justin Trudeau Arrives In New Delhi With Family For Week-Long State Visit
    The seven-day Indian state visit is a mix of business meetings, round tables on education, women’s rights and human rights, tours of popular Indian sites and a meeting with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

    Namaste India: Justin Trudeau Arrives In New Delhi With Family For Week-Long State Visit

    Sentencing Hearing For Former Surrey Sikh Temple President Baldev Singh Kalsi

    Sentencing Hearing For Former Surrey Sikh Temple President Baldev Singh Kalsi
    Baldev Singh Kalsi, former president of Gurudwara Sahib Brookside temple, who was charged with attempted murder of his wife, Narinder Kalsi, is facing his sentencing hearing

    Sentencing Hearing For Former Surrey Sikh Temple President Baldev Singh Kalsi

    Calgary's Mayor Naheed Nenshi Says To Ignore John Horgan Over Trans Mountain

    Calgary Mayor Naheed Nenshi says the right strategy in the dispute between Alberta and B.C. over the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion is to ignore Premier John Horgan.

    Calgary's Mayor Naheed Nenshi Says To Ignore John Horgan Over Trans Mountain