Bogumil Pacak-Gamalski

India – vast subcontinent with thousands of years of rich history. An underdeveloped country with nuclear weapons, an active and successful Space exploration program, and many more very advanced technological achievements. With huge social disparities, hunger, and homelessness. You can get there very cheaply an excellent medical treatment/procedure. If you are a ‘medical tourist’ from Europe, North America or a rich person living in India (I am certain there are many of them). The hope of the West that it will act as a counterbalance to China’s ambitions.
Now this. News that stunned Canada. Canadian PM in our Parliament solemnly accuses India of a political assassination in Canada. Apparently, he tried to bring it to India’s PM Narenda Modi – a fervent Hindu xenophobe, during the G20 summit (9-10 September). But Mr. Modi would have none of it and snubbed Mr. Trudeau.
Hence, the stunning accusation of the assassination in Surrey of Canadian citizen of Indian ethnicity. Both countries are recalling high-ranking diplomats in both countries.
We, as Canadians, should be rightfully angry at India. No other country has the right and should never be allowed to conduct assassinations in other states. That is not Israeli Mosad hunting down Nazi war criminals decades ago. India is not supposed to be Putin’s Russia poisoning political opponents in other countries. India is a democracy, after all.
All of the above is valid. But is it the whole story? Does it have a Canadian background from years ago?
Yes, it does. It involves a terrorist act of terrible proportions. Hundreds of people were murdered. A full passenger plane went down by the shores of Ireland, en route from Canada to Europe.
I remember it well. I lived at that time in Surrey. Close to the temple and organization that was accused of that terrorist act. Remember the names of the accused. Remember the long, botched CSIS (Canadian version of FBI) and prosecutorial investigation. Remember the ‘no guilty’ verdicts exactly because of the botched investigation and prosecution. Yes, the poorest and the smallest (in importance to the plot) of the accused was sentenced: Iderjit Singh Rejat. The other accused, Talwinder Singh Palmer was found not guilty. Even though RCMP believed he was the mastermind behind the entire horrifying terrorist act. In subsequent years he met his fate when he travelled to India and Indian agents assassinated him.
There is one other name not mentioned here yet. A person everyone was talking about at that time. Ripudaman Singh Malik – a wealthy financier and businessman in the Surrey Sikh community. Especially the Khalsa Society, the leading Sikh Temple in North America. Widespread rumors were that he was the true instigator of that terrorist act. But no one would volunteer to testify against him. The only person in the huge Indian diaspora, who wouldn’t let go of the accusation against Mali was a popular Indian-language newspaper in BC and the host of his own radio station, Tara Singh Hayer. He was shot and paralyzed in Surrey in 1988. Ten years later he was murdered.
The terrorist bombing of the Air India plane cost the lives of 329 Canadians, mostly of Indian origin. The massacre could have been even worse – a second plane en route to Japan was targeted, too. That bomb exploded prematurely and only two airport personnel were killed.
Having said all of it, one must be absolutely clear. All of it is by any means an excuse for the inexcusable: an assassination of a Canadian citizen carried by a foreign state on Canada’s soil.
But it must be also stressed – a free Canadian of whatever origin can support any cause she/he chooses. Likewise, it can oppose any ideas, causes, actions, states, and even religions. But it can not support or organize violent organizations, or terrorist cells. It puts Canadians at risk. It puts Canada at risk, a country that invited you here.
Our intelligence agencies and law enforcement must pay attention to it and act, where evidence leads to such conclusion. Just ‘observing and gathering intel’ is not good enough.
Recalling all of it would not be completed if I didn’t mention why these horrible acts were done by these people. It was a response to the massacre in Punjab (a part of India, predominantly Muslim) in 1-10 of June 1984 . It was ordered by revered India’s PM, Indira Gandhi, after unsuccessful negotiations in order to arrest leaders of armed rebellion against India. As a result of protracted battle with heavy armed militias many Sikhs fighters and pilgrims were killed. The Indian army also suffered high casualties. Another fallout of these rebellion was the assassination of Indira Gandhi by her own bodyguards, who were Sikhs. Often forgotten was also the plots and misleading information before the riots by Soviet KGB, that through secret channels (as planned by the Soviets) reached Delhi.

At the end a personal note from myself: a good democracy can’t function properly in any religious state by design. Not in Israel, not in Poland (formally a democratic republic, but a Catholic Church has there a huge power and sway), not in non-existent yet Khalistan, not in Iran or any of Muslim states, where Islam is constitutionally entrenched, not in India where current PM calls Hinduism a state religion, not even in the tiny Vatican, or in Buddhist states or any other religion. Whenever it does, it always means that some citizens are second-class only. I strongly believe in religious freedom. Yet equally strongly in the freedom from religion.