Rights activist Jaswant Singh Khalra's son attends Guru Nanak Jahaz Remembrance Day event in Canada city
Janmeet Singh's great-grandfather (Jaswant Singh Khalra's grandfather), Harnam Singh, was one of the 376 passengers aboard the Japanese steamship Komagata Maru (Guru Nanak Jahaz) when it reached Vancouver on May 23, 1914. He was arrested when the vessel reached India on Sept 27, 1914.
The declaration at Surrey City Hall was attended by a host of dignitaries, including members of Parliament Sukh Dhaliwal and Gurbax Singh Saini, along with British Columbia legislative assembly members Amina Shah, Garry Begg, Mandeep Singh Dhaliwal, Harman Bhangu, and Jody Toor.
Surrey councillor Harry Bains formally presented a copy of the proclamation to Janmeet Singh.
Notable attendees also included researcher and Ragi Bhai Baldeep Singh, and former Pakistani MP Rai Aziz Ullah Khan, whose family are custodians of the 17th-century Ganga Sagar, a copper urn belonging to tenth Sikh master Guru Gobind Singh.
Gurvinder Singh Dhaliwal from the Guru Nanak Jahaz Heritage Society, the driving force behind the proclamation, spoke about the historical significance of the steamship. Wearing a "Guru Nanak Jahaz" imprinted tee, Dhaliwal recounted how the passengers were denied entry and kept near Vancouver for two months before their forced return.
It was further emphasised the importance of rectifying past wrongs and re-naming the vessel Guru Nanak Jahaz, as it was renamed by the passengers, led by Baba Gurdit Singh, after religious ceremonies.
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