Canada’s NDP pushes for recognition of the 1984 Sikh Genocide.
NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh speaks at a press conference as he unveils the NDP's top priorities ahead of the federal budget on February 13, 2018. Singh says he condemns all acts of terrorism no matter who is committing them. THE CANADIAN PRESS/ Patrick Doyle
Canada’s New Democratic Party (NDP), which has a formal understanding with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s ruling Liberal Party, is launching a campaign to seek “official recognition” of the ‘1984 Sikh genocide’ in the Canadian parliament.
NDP leader Jagmeet Singh announced the campaign, stating that on the 40th anniversary, the party will pursue recognition of the 1984 Sikh Genocide in the Canadian Parliament. Singh reiterated this stance while addressing attendees at the Vaisakhi parade in Surrey, British Columbia, emphasising the importance of federal-level recognition for the genocide.
Singh described such a motion as a “direct rebuke” to the government responsible for the genocide, asserting that the atrocities committed during that period must be acknowledged and condemned at the highest level of government.
The NDP campaign urges the Government of Canada to formally acknowledge the state-organised killing spree as a genocide. The term ‘Sikh genocide’ refers to the violence that erupted in Delhi and other parts of India following the assassination of Prime Minister Indira Gandhi in October 1984.
In April 2017, a similar motion passed by the Ontario legislature strained relations between Canada and India. Jagmeet Singh, then a member of the Ontario legislature, had previously introduced a motion in June 2016, which failed. However, a motion introduced by Harinder Malhi of the incumbent Liberal Party the following year succeeded.
While the move has been praised by groups like Sikhs for Justice (SFJ), its general counsel, Gurpatwant Pannun, suggested that given the ongoing Khalistan Referendum and investigations into potential links between Indian agents and the murder of SFJ coordinator Hardeep Singh Nijjar, it may be more appropriate to pursue recognition of “Sikh People’s Right to Self-Determination.”
Singh also acknowledged Nijjar’s sacrifice during his remarks at the Surrey parade.
A motion to recognise the “Sikh genocide” was previously presented to Canada’s House of Commons in 2010 by Liberal Party MP Sukh Dhaliwal but failed to pass.
The potential passage of such a motion could further complicate already strained relations between New Delhi and Ottawa.
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