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Tel: 905-670-1522, Fax: 416-661-7273 Vol.8 , No. 1071 Thursday, April 07, 2011 25 Chetah, Nanaksahi Calendar 543
Sikh Press Staff Reporter
(April 6-2011) Liberal candidate Gurbax Malhi
became the talk of the town today when he
choose word like “dogs are barking” in response
to the conservative candidate`s suggestion for
him to renew his real estate license because he
is gone need it. Bal Gosal made these comments
in the presence of Hon. Jason Kenney at his
campaign office during a rally on Monday
afternoon. The host of ankhila punjab radio,
Sukhminder Singh Hansra played audio clip of
Bal Gosal then asked Malhi’s response. Liberal
incumbent Mr. Malhi used a phrase from
Punjabi saying that if a dog runs through cotton
field, won`t get quilt. He then reiterated that
dogs are barking and he has blessing of
almighty. After intervention from the host, he
said he did not name anyone.
This became hot topic within minutes,
phone line start lighting like a storm in the
studio said Hansra. He said there were no plans
for a open line program but the circumstances
compelled to make a quick change in the
programming. Many calls came to criticize the
language used by Mr. Malhi.
NDP candidate from BRAMLEA
GORE MALTON, Mr. Jagmeet Singh was
quick to ask for an apology from both candi-
dates. In a release issued by Jagmeet`s cam-
paign office said “It is important that all
candidates take their responsibility as role mod-
els and community leaders seriously”.
Singh said the use of profanity, insults
and personal attacks should be discouraged as
they are cheap tactics to distract voters from the
real issues facing the community. He urges both
candidates to apologize to the community and
constituents.
The constituents are upset and calling
me to know more about the incident said
Hansra. He told Sikh Press that the conservative
candidate Bal Gosal has called me to ask for an
audio recording of the program which will be
provided after his formal request. Baljeet Gosal
told me that he has received many phone calls
about Malhi`s gaff on radio.
Apology demanded
Ludhiana, Punjab: The per-
formance of Sukhdev
Singh amazed spectators as
he came on stage with inno-
vative ‘Sikh war tool’ that
shoots 12 arrows without
loading it again. A disciple
of Baba Banda Singh Ba-
hadur Gatka Akhara,
Sukhdev was taking part in
the first district-level
‘gatka’ competition at Guru
Nanak Dev Engineering
College. Seven teams from
various ‘akharas’ took part.
He targeted a card-
board placed at a distance
of around 20 metres and
hisd plastic arrows knocked
the board as effectively as a
bullet.
Sukhdev said, “This
is one of the ancient arms
that Sikhs used in war. It
has a magazine fitted over
the wooden body.”
Telling how to operate it, he
said, “The operator needs
to stretch his legs to hold it
in both hands like a camera.
He loads arrows and
presses the trigger.”
Kamaan, a Sikh War Tool
Sukhdev Singh with his ‘kamaan’.
Courageous Journalism02 April 07, 2011
Closer you get, clearer you see the ConservatismBrampton/SP Bureau/April 5-2011:-
The conservative culture of divisive
attitudes is more and more visible in
Brampton and Mississauga as the
election draws near.
It is the culture of playing
partisan games. To note, they even
hand pick journalists for opportuni-
ties to meet and greet their leaders
perhaps, just to push their agendas,
rather then actually engaging voters
about their policies to win their
votes. For example Hansra Group is
a Mississauga based media outlet
with three major components, is ex-
periencing difficulties to have a one
on one with the Prime Minister, per-
haps because some of the notes in the
conservative war room are written in
red ink by some local supports of the
Conservative Candidates in Bramp-
ton. “These types of tactics are to-
tally rubbish to think that our media
outlet is bias in anyway” said
Sukhminder S. Hansra of Hansra
Group.
In the Punjabi Daily news-
room, journalists are struggling to
get information where as the minister
Kenney and Prime Minister Stephen
Harper are rolling around giving
roundtable meetings to their hand
picked Punjabi journalists.
This has been brought to at-
tention of Dimiti Soudas and other
PMO media individuals recently and
in the past and no response other then
“we can’t bring everyone to PM’s
roundtable” He noted that the Prime
Minister came to Brampton and no
questions were granted to ethnic
media, though the crowd and the pur-
pose of his visit was to address
the people of the riding.
Mr. Hansra also pointed out
that during the general
election in 2008, To-
ries had written off the
ethnic media. When our marketing
people approached their office for
buying ads, they were told that we do
not have any funds for ethnic media,
where as now in 2011, the party war
room is playing divisive games to
hand pick their favourite journalists
to cater. ‘This could cost Tories big
time if they stick to their divide and
rule policy” said senior member of
the Punjabi Press Club of Canada &
radio host Sukhdev Singh Gill. Gill
said that no defection from Liberals
has been seen even though the prime
minister and immigration minister
has routinely been seen in the streets
of Brampton.
Should Canadianpoliticians attend SikhGenocide Conference?
Sukhminder Singh Hansra
Recently Amnesty Interna-
tional criticized Canadian
Government for their stand
for Human Rights. Canada
was known to be a champion
for Human Right, which been
slipping due to wrong politi-
cal decisions by our politi-
cians.
When Sikh Genocide
was taking place in New
Delhi in 1984 after the assas-
sination of the Prime Minister
of India Ms. Indira Gandhi,
Canadian foreign minister
Hon. Joe Clark was present
there. He saw first hand the
killing of Sikhs in the streets
of New Delhi, yet when he
came back to Canada, he is-
sued a secret memo to all
Canadian politicians to refrain
from attending functions of
Sikh organizations. Since then
the Canadian Sikhs are living
under a suspicious shadow.
The fact is that Canada, a
human rights champion
started trading human rights
for economic benefit.
After 26 years, a liberal mp
from Brampton West Mr. An-
drew Kania filed a petition in
the House of Commons ask-
ing the Government of
Canada to recognize the mass
killing of Sikhs in 1984 as
GENOCIDE. 4 liner petition
created a hue and cry for In-
dian Government and Indian
citizens in garb of Canadian
citizens, who raised concerns
and painted those who were
trying to seek Justice for
30000+ dead Sikhs as extrem-
ists.
Canadian Politicians
stood still and watched idle.
Will Canada continue doing
that? I think Canada need to
uphold our standard as a
Human Rights champion.
For this very same reason, it
is imperative that the Cana-
dian politicians should attend
the Sikh Genocide conference
happening in Malton at
Moonlight Convention Center
on Saturday April 9th 2011, to
watch evedential documen-
tary film prepared by the Sikh
for Justice and hear some
speakers who can shed some
light .
April 07, 2011 03 Courageous Journalism
Stephen Harper made over-
tures to new immigrants in
the Greater Toronto Area
Wednesday, but questions
persisted over why a num-
ber of people were barred
from attending Conserva-
tive events earlier this week.
On Tuesday, several
people said they were
kicked out of Conservative
rallies in Ontario for various
reasons, ranging from Face-
book profile pictures to
bumper stickers to attending
climate-change confer-
ences. Harper responded
Wednesday to the criti-
cisms, saying that local or-
ganizers are responsible for
security, but emphasized
there are "literally thou-
sands of people coming out
to these events."
Similar to Tuesday,
he declined to comment on
what took place at the rallies
in southwestern Ontario or
to respond when asked
whether staff actually check
attendees' Facebook ac-
counts. One of those barred
from a London, Ont., event
had posted a picture of her-
self on Facebook with Lib-
eral Leader Michael
Ignatieff. "I think it's better
when you're turning people
away than when you can't
get people to come but as I
say I don't want to comment
on individual cases," Harper
said. The RCMP also re-
leased a statement Wednes-
day after a man came
forward saying a Mountie
was the one that kicked him
out of an event.
"A RCMP officer
came up to us and said,
‘This is a private event and
organizers want you out and
you either leave or we will
escort you out," Ismail Hirji,
who was preregistered for a
Tory rally, told Tuesday.
On Wednesday, the
RCMP sent out a brief state-
ment to officers, saying that
they are only responsible for
the security of party leaders,
not for managing political
events.
"RCMP members
assigned to the security de-
tails for party leaders have
been reminded of their re-
sponsibilities," said the note
from spokesman Sgt. Greg
Cox. It's not the first time
the Conservatives have used
the police to keep journalist
or members of the public
away from events.
In 2008, a prime
ministerial aide had the
Mounties move the media
away from Harper. The aide
was later appointed to the
Senate. The Liberals were
quick to pounce on the
issue, posting a parody of
Conservative Facebook
tactics.
Harper on defensive over rally restrictions
Courageous Journalism04 April 07, 2011
Some tims; electioneering and its prop-
aganda gets over nasty turns into a real
verbal abuse against one another.
Covering election in India with “Peo-
ples’Gaurdian” some where in early
1970, a candidate was virtuelly hy-
jacked and was returned unharmed after
the elctions. There are cases when the
Candidate is assaulted and some times
meet his tragic death. It is politics, any
way. Political leaders meet such fate no
matter they are Gandhis or president
John Fitgerard Kennedys.
It is exciting to the point when
the Parties show their plumes and on the
attack of the opponent, or else show
their white feathers and run. No matter
it is India or Canada on electoral fight;
all finish to death for success. Since the
fall of the Tory Government all Polical
Parties are criss crossing Canada as if
the voter does not know what to do with
his vote and these Parties are the only
School Masters to teach its use. To my
mind in a Western World like Canada
campaign and propaganda must be
stopped for all parties so that they may
have the period of detoxification of all
political glut.
This idea will save millions of
tax payers’ money on wasteful mad run.
Millions of pounds of smoke pollution
of cars, coaches and chartered plane
will stop. Above all, the mental pollu-
tion of verbal abuse of all Candidates on
our ear drums may give us a restful
sleep. In westren World, epithets like
stupid, foolish, absurd, brain damaged,
mad statements, bitchiness, are very
common. They often hurl these slurs
upon one another.Recent remarks of
Stephen Harper of “ You Ethnics” be-
came talk of the town for the liberals.
It looks that electioneering is
not the War of Roses but a War of
words. Why not induct a new idea of
making Canada a land of no campaign-
ing, no convassing, no speeches and no
wooing for the Parties. It is an educted
society; leave them alone to chose their
own party candidate. It looks just as our
eating wearing and transport is gov-
erned not by our own psychic order of
selection, but by the advertising agen-
cies and propaganda machine of com-
mercialism; so do we select our party
candidates. We are left with no choice
of our own. You cannot deny the fact
that without propaganda and commer-
cial advertisement you cannot sell your
self and your product. You simply can
not over rule it. Where as election de-
void of partie, slogans, advertisement,
debates, calling names and casting
down the opponent remains no more a
marriage party, but a dolesome
funeral procession.
Canada being the melting pot
for many cultures and societies; is learn-
ing soon the phrases and the sign lan-
guage of “ These people!” I am sorry I
am also using those divisive hateful
words or else there is no harm in calling
a spade a spade. What else will you
say! In the West to show a finger means
some thing nasty; but in Indian culture
it has the nicety if you point to the sky
it means God is great or God is one. A
western women loves to call her hus-
band, “ My dogie, my darling dogie!”
In Indian culture to call a husband
“dogie”will end up in husbands’ wrath
and else in divorce. To throw a shoe on
some one in the West; means not more
than a retort, a shoe string, but in Indian
or Middle East culture it is most uncom-
mon degradation to throw a shoe on any
body; as did a Journalist on home Min-
ister and in Iraq some one threw a shoe
on President Bush.
Recent Radio Show of Ankhila
Punjab had an interview with Mr. Gur-
buksh Malhi on his campaign and how
his opposition of Conservative Candi-
date has remarked that Mr. Malhi
should get his “real estate licence re-
newed”. In fact, it was a sarcastic re-
marks saying that he should go to his
old profession.
On this remarks Mr. Malhi lost
his cool and labelled all his opponents
as “howling dogs” not once, but four or
five times. Along with that he used
some “dog culture” phraseology that
will lose its impact in any translation
of English.
How does Mr. Malhis’ Party
take it or how the Conservative Party
candidates react to these remarks is
their plate of pie! For us; as tied up with
Punjabi culture; isnt it too much over
savoury or really sour!!
Toronto/Sikh Press:- The National radio
C.B.C hosted a Canada wide discussion
on attention towards ethnic voters in
forthcoming election. It was hosted by
renowned Radio host Micheal Enright.
The members of the penal were Ms.
Sama Elbiary who is the host of Mon-
trial based Arabic Radio called Carvan.
Frank Qi who is the editor of Chinese
TV television station FairChild TV, An-
gelo Percicilo who is the editor for Ital-
ian newspaper and is a weekly columnist
of Toronto Star, Mr. Sukhminder Singh
Hansra who is the managing editor of
Punjabi Daily, Sikh Press and host of the
the Ankhila Punjab a Radio.
In this discussion, Mr.
Sukhminder Singh Hansra exposed the
main concerns of the Sikhs living in
Canada; exclusive from the issues of
all Canadians. In these Sikh issues; one
outstanding concern is the genocide of
the Sikhs in India. It is the main issue
where the parliamentarians stood
against the petition filed by a Liberal
Member of Parliament in June 2010.
Hansra said the opposing Candidates
may have to face the hornets’ nest. He
further stressed
if the Govern-
ment of India
had justified the
issues and con-
cens of the
Sikhs; there
would be no
need for the
Sikh to raise it
today in
Canada. It is a
pity that the
High Commis-
sioner of India
influenced the
Canadian polit-
ical parties not
to support geno-
cide petition of the Canadian Sikhs.
In his discussion Mr. Hansra
emphasised the gravity of the Punjabi
ethnic votes by saying that all political
Parties kicked off their campaign right
from Brampton and Mississauga; due to
the fact that these ethnic votes do bal-
ance the swing of vote bank. Along with
that Mr. Hansra said that the remarks
“You People” by Stephen Harper is not
very much cherished by our community
and we do realise that the term is very
much divisive.
Remarking on NDP leadership;
Mr. Sukhminder Singh Hansra said that
Jack layton is a hero for the Sikhs. Re-
garding the NDP Candidate; Jagmeet
Singh, Mr. Hansra said that he could
damage Mr. G Malhi in a considrable
way. As regard Sikh and their strong
participation in Canadian politics; Mr.
Hansra Remarked that, “ Politics is a
passion for the Sikhs”
The most out standing sum up
of Mr. Hansra were; when he said that if
ethnicity is a divisive phrase, do not use
it for us as ethnic media, we are the new
mainstream.
Dr. Solomon Naz ( 416-661-7272+3)
Election Preparednessand Propaganda
Discussion on Ethnic Votes hit CBC Airwaves!
Angelo Percicilo, editor for Italian newspaper, Michael Enright CBC The Sunday Edition, Sukhminder Singh Hansra
05 April 07, 2011 Courageous Journalism
by Dr. Amarjeet Singh
‘Some operatives are engaged in the ‘statistical ethniccleansing’ of the worlds’ Sikhs! They MUST be stopped!India, the worlds’ largest demoN-
cracy, released (last Thursday) the
first results of the (2011) census
which shows that the world’s second-
most populous nation (India) had
added, in the past decade, another
181 million people (equivalent to
about six ‘Canadas’) to reach a huge
population total of one billion two
hundred million, despite the fact that,
India’s bigoted Brahmin-castedomi-
nated ruling elite, has been engaged
in ‘statistical’ and physical ‘ethnic
cleansing’ of minorities like the
Sikhs, tribals, Muslims, Dalits and
other minorities.
While people are focused on
the results of the 2010 census a ‘sta-
tistical ethnic cleansing’ of the Sikhs
has been discovered. There is no bet-
ter example in the whole world, of
statistical ‘ethnic cleansing’ than the
current state-sponsored exercise,
being covertly carried out by Indian
Intelligence agency operatives on be-
half of the Indian rulers to reduce the
numbers of a muscular and proud mi-
nority – the Sikhs. This ‘statistical
ethnic cleansing’ of the Sikhs is
being carried out in the worlds’ top
Encyclopedias, Almanacs and Year
books etc., to somehow reduce the
number of the worlds’ Sikhs and thus
reduce their voice and their influ-
ence. The following lines will show
how the muscular, prosperous hard
working Sikhs are being ‘ethnically
cleansed’ by the use of statistics:- Ac-
cording to the ‘2008 New York
Times World Almanac And Book of
Facts’ page 711 (Library of Congress
Catalog Card Number 4-3781: Soft-
cover ISBN-10: 1-60057-072-0:
ISBN 13: 978-1-60057- 072-8) the
worlds’ Sikh population was shown
(four years ago, in 2008) as number-
ing twenty five million, eight hun-
dred and eighty thousand, one
hundred (yes 25, 880, 100). This
number was sourced to the presti-
gious 2007 Encyclopedia Britannica,
on page 711 of the widely-used 2008
New York Times World Almanac and
Year book published by World Al-
manac Books, 132 West, 31st street,
New York, NY 10001.
Lo and behold, one year later,
the Sikh population for the whole
world, in 2009, was shown as having
dropped to 22, 927, 500 (from the
2008 figure of 25, 880, 100, men-
tioned in the above paragraph) and
published in the prestigious ‘2009
New York Times World Almanac
And Book Of Facts’, page 682 (Li-
brary of Congress Catalog Card No.
43781: Soft-cover ISBN-10: 1-
60057-105-0: ISBN 13: 978-1-
60057-105-3). About Three million
Sikhs just disappeared from the face
of the earth – statistically ‘cleansed’
as a consequence! These reduced
numbers were also sourced to the
prestigious and widely used 2008
Encyclopedia Britannica by the
‘2009 New York Times World Al-
manac And Book Of Facts’. A tele-
phone call was made to The World
Almanac Books publisher of the Al-
manac in New York (which was at-
tended by an employee with an
accent) who was asked to correct the
false (reduced) entry for the world’s
Sikh population. He promised to look
into it. He did’nt!
One year later, in 2010, in-
stead of making a correction, or mak-
ing amends, the ‘2010 New York
Times World Almanac And Book Of
Facts’, page 705 (Library of Con-
gress Catalog Card No. 4-378: Soft-
cover ISBN-13: 978-1-123-7 ::
ISBN-10: 1-123-9) had the chutzpah
to repeat the previous years 22, 927,
500 figure, without a + or – change,
as the number of Sikhs in the world
stood still at the number of 22, 927,
500. This grave error was again
brought to the attention of World Al-
manac Books, the publishers of the
2010 New York Times World Al-
manac And Book Of Facts.
However, after repeated tele-
phone calls, the “2011 New York
Times World Almanac And Book Of
Facts’ page 698 (Library of Congress
ISBN-13: 978-1-60057-134-3 ::
ISBN-10: 1-60057-134-4) has grudg-
ingly shown the world-wide Sikh
population as being 24, 222, 700,
which number is still short by one
million, six hundred fifty seven thou-
sand from the published 2008 figure,
of 25, 880, 100 Sikhs. Prior to 2008
Almanac the number of Sikhs in the
world had been increasing by about
five to seven hundred thousand every
year. The correct number of the
worlds’ Sikhs, for 2011, with the nor-
mal Punjabi increase, should have
been around + or – around 28 mil-
lion. Nobody in this world is inter-
ested in reducing the number of the
worlds’ Sikhs by use of statistics ex-
cept the Indian rulers who want to
make the Sikhs a minority in the
strategic Sikh homeland of Punjab,
Khalistan which borders Pakistan.
Going by the ‘Duck’ adage that ‘if it
walks like a duck, looks like a duck,
quacks like a duck – it is a duck’. It
is obvious this ‘statistical’ assault on
the world’s Sikhs, has been spon-
sored and carried out by some min-
ions of the Indian government as the
‘finger prints’ of the rogue Indian In-
telligence agency - RAW – are visi-
ble all over this episode. Sikh
compatriots in the legal profession,
who read this column in the United
States and Canada ought to have a
‘look see’ so that the matter can be
properly pursued through the courts.
Getting back to the first re-
sults of the ongoing (2010) census,
announced last Thursday, (mentioned
in paragraph one above) the 2010 ac-
tual Indian census population figure
of one billion, two hundred and ten
million far exceeds the projected
2010 population figure for India of
one billion one hundred and seventy
three million, which had been fore-
cast by the prestigious ‘Population
Division/International Programs cen-
ter of the U.S. Census Bureau; U.S.
Department of Commerce. (See
‘population forecast’ for 2010 for
India on page 732 of “2011 New
York Times World Almanac And
Book Of Facts’). These (population)
numbers are quoted and used by the
U.N. Development Program and
other world bodies and any excessive
change puts a black mark on India’s
so called growth ‘story’. See a report,
full of lies in the Wall Street Journal,
by Tripti Lahiri, published last week-
end, headlined ‘India passes 1.2 bil-
lion mark’ ‘which says that, India,
the worlds’ largest demoNcracy, re-
leased (last Thursday) the first results
of the (2011) census which shows
that the world’s second-most popu-
lous nation (India) had added, in the
past decade, another 181 million peo-
ple (equivalent to about six
‘Canadas’) to reach a huge popula-
tion total of one billion two hundred
million, despite the fact that, India’s
bigoted Brahmin-castedominated
ruling elite, has been engaged in ‘sta-
tistical’ and physical ‘ethnic cleans-
ing’ of minorities like the Sikhs,
tribals, Muslims, Dalits and other
minorities.
While people are focused on
the results of the 2010 census a ‘sta-
tistical ethnic cleansing’ of the Sikhs
has been discovered. There is no bet-
ter example in the whole world, of
statistical ‘ethnic cleansing’ than the
current state-sponsored exercise,
being covertly carried out by Indian
Intelligence agency operatives on be-
half of the Indian rulers to reduce the
numbers of a muscular and proud mi-
nority – the Sikhs. This ‘statistical
ethnic cleansing’ of the Sikhs is
being carried out in the worlds’ top
Encyclopedias, Almanacs and Year
books etc., to somehow reduce the
number of the worlds’ Sikhs and thus
reduce their voice and their influ-
ence. The following lines will show
how the muscular, prosperous hard
working Sikhs are being ‘ethnically
cleansed’ by the use of statistics:- Ac-
cording to the ‘2008 New York
Times World Almanac And Book of
Facts’ page 711 (Library of Congress
Catalog Card Number 4-3781: Soft-
cover ISBN-10: 1-60057-072-0:
ISBN 13: 978-1-60057- 072-8) the
worlds’ Sikh population was shown
(four years ago, in 2008) as number-
ing twenty five million, eight hun-
dred and eighty thousand, one
hundred (yes 25, 880, 100). This
number was sourced to the presti-
gious 2007 Encyclopedia Britannica,
on page 711 of the widely-used 2008
New York Times World Almanac and
Year book published by World Al-
manac Books, 132 West, 31st street,
New York, NY 10001.
Lo and behold, one year later,
the Sikh population for the whole
world, in 2009, was shown as having
dropped to 22, 927, 500 (from the
2008 figure of 25, 880, 100,
mentioned (Cont..to page 8)
According to the 2011 census preliminary numbers released recently India’s population hasshot up to 1.2 billion which will add millions more to the S. Asian dystopia’s unwashed
06 April 07, 2011 Courageous Journalism
Letter to EditorDear Mr. Hansra,Waheguru ji ka Khalsa, Waheguru ji ki Fateh
Last week I saw a picture that made myblood boil. I saw a group of Sikhs standing aroundStephen Harper giving him some sort of credit inthe Sikh community. I can not begin to say howupset I was given this man’s history with the Sikhcommunity.
Stephen Harper has never cared for thecommunity. In fact, his first political party, withhim as a senior adviser, had a policy not to haveSikhs in the RCMP. In the almost 20 years sinceMr. Harper has never apologized or shown regretfor this irresponsible action. It seems some Sikh‘leaders’ don’t seem to remember either. I remem-ber. I remember people having buttons asking ifwe were Sikhs or Canadians. I remember havingcomplete strangers coming up to argue with meabout this situation. Now Mr. Harper may nothave led the fight against Sikhs in the RCMP buthe and his party sure fanned the flames. He couldhave been responsible and said that we are allCanadians or that people should be given the rightto help fight crime. Instead, he and his party triedto make us feel like outsiders.
If that is not enough about turbans, here’sa quote from the Blogging Tories who on one oftheir blogs state, ‘Prime Minister Stephen Harperis appreciative of the Blogging Tories’ efforts’.Here’s a quote from that same blog: "Rememberthe Sikh turbans ruling for the RCMP. The Sikhslook like clowns in those, better suited in circusesthan in a police force."
If this is not enough to make people think,let’s take Stephen Harper’s visit to the GoldenTemple last year. In the national newspapers wesaw a picture of Stephen Harper praying. This wasthe cute photo-op he was looking for. I read astory in the Indian Tribune saying how StephenHarper refused Prasad and langar. The part of thestory that I found most troubling was a quotationfrom a senior SGPC official who said, ‘It is forthe first time that we have suffered such humilia-tion at the hands of a foreigner in our own office.’This is not the quote I want to hear about thePrime Minister of our country. Of course therewill be someone who wants to spin my words solet me say this: I have worked with several hon-ourable large and small ‘c’ conservatives. I do notdislike Tories. I do not find it wrong for Sikhs tobe Tories. However I do find it wrong for Sikhsor anyone who supports religious freedoms tosupport the Conservatives under Stephen Harperor as he likes to call them the Harper Government.For those Sikhs who are card carrying Tories andcan’t see themselves voting for another party, youdo have a choice to sit on your hands until yourparty chooses another leader.
Stephen Harper has come to the GTA sev-eral times already. He feels that he has a chancein these ridings. Let’s show him that he is not wel-come until he apologizes and makes it sincere.Let’s not him give those photo-ops he loves. Fi-nally, let’s not give him our votes.
Sincerely,
Tunu Sodhi
Liberal platform would cut spending,hike taxes on the very wealthy
OTTAWA — The federal Liber-als will slash spending, increasetaxes for the rich, encouragehomeowners to make green ren-ovations and allow citizens tovote online according to detailsof their election platform re-leased Sunday.
"We know the humblingdisciplines of being in office,"Liberal leader Michael Ignatiefftold reporters in Ottawa. "Whatthat means is there are a lot ofthings you'd like to do, there area lot of things you coulddo, and there are about fivethings you absolutely mustdo," he said.
That's why the firstLiberal budget would beheavily focused on a fam-ily pack plan, Ignatieffsaid, $500 million for earlychildhood learning, a$190-million increase foremployment insurancebenefits for family care-givers and $545 million fora family care tax benefit.
"What we don't want is toforce families to place their lovedones, their seniors in hospitals.That is not a good solution. Thatwill increase health-care costs foreveryone," Ignatieff said.
Despite mocking Conser-vative leader Stephen Harper forproposing policies such as in-come splitting that won't kick inuntil 2015, nearly half of Ignati-eff's major proposals — a $700-million boost for the GuaranteedIncome Supplement and $980million for a post-secondarylearning "passport" — won't befunded until the second year of aLiberal mandate.
The Liberal leader saidhis party would tackle the deficitthe same way the party did in the1990s — by bringing the deficittarget to one per cent of GDPwithin two years. Although Ig-natieff told Postmedia News Fri-day he planned to balance thebudget by 2015, he did not pro-vide a target date Sunday.
Liberals, however, an-nounced they planned to save $3billion in one year — rising to $5
billion in year two — by increas-ing the corporate tax rate by 1.5per cent, to a level of 18 per cent,and another $300 million byeliminating a tax break on stockoptions for the very rich.
Canadians who earnmore than $100,000 in annualstock options would now have topay income tax on those earn-ings. "On the corporate-tax num-bers you'll notice that we havetaken a cautious and prudent es-timate of the revenue implica-
tions of this — it ramps up to$5.2 billion, not $6 (billion)," Ig-natieff said, referring to estimateshe had made two days earlier.
"We've made very cau-tious assumptions here. We oweit to the Canadian people to givethem responsible, prudent fiscalmanagement." The party also be-lieves it will save $500 million intwo years by slashing govern-ment advertising, limiting thesize of the cabinet and the PrimeMinister's Office and cutting theamount of money spent on con-sultants. With the money savedthe party presented a balancedplatform that increased socialprogram spending by $2.69 bil-lion. The Liberals' new "redbook," entitled "Your Family.Your future. Your Canada," how-ever, makes no mention of a$2.2-billion deal the federal gov-ernment plans to sign with Que-bec for that province's HST.
Ignatieff could not saywhere precisely this moneywould come from when pressedby reporters. Among the Liberals'new proposals is a green renova-tion tax credit worth $2,025 for
expenses of up to $13,500 onnew windows, doors and roofing.A new youth hiring incentivewould allow small- and medium-sized businesses to not pay em-ployment insurance premiumsfor any youth hired."We aregoing to create a specific hiringincentive, roll back your payrolltax, if you hire young workers,"Ignatieff said. "We think that is akey thing we can do for small-and medium-size businesses toprosper." The party would end
the acceleratedcapital cost al-lowance for oil-sands developmentand reinvest the$265 million intotechnologies to re-duce the oilsandsimpact on the envi-ronment. The Lib-erals also pledgedto create a cap-and-trade system,such as the one
that already exists in Europe. Theparty would boost spending onaboriginal education and lan-guage training and pledged $40million for a veterans learningbenefit. The Liberals would also:restore the court challenges pro-gram; spend $100 million for afreshwater strategy; and reallo-cate $1 billion in funding, afterthe Afghan mission ends, to in-crease development aid andCanada's participation in UNmissions. Ignatieff is also pledg-ing to reform question period inthe House of Commons, with oneday dedicated to questions theprime minister would answer.The party will also create a "peo-ple's question period" in whichcabinet ministers and the primeminister would answer questionsfrom Canadians online. The Lib-erals also say they will directElections Canada to develop In-ternet voting options to encour-age more people to vote.Meanwhile, the federal Conser-vatives took aim at the Liberalplatform Sunday, launching a cri-tique of it even before it waslaunched.
Courageous Journalism April 07, 2011 07
OTTAWA —Liberal leader Michael
Ignatieff dumped a Quebec candidate
who called aboriginal people "feath-
erheads" and a newspaper revealed
another Grit nominee had once been
convicted of drunk driving.
A star Tory candidate, mean-
while, came under fire for his remarks
on whether Canada has conquered
poverty. The controversies drove
Wednesday's policy announcements
into the background as scrutiny of
potential MPs and their pasts
dominated the political agenda.
The case of Quebec candidate
Andre Forbes elicited the quickest
reaction. "As soon as I was apprised
of past comments made by the Lib-
eral candidate in Manicouagan, Andre
Forbes, I immediately asked my staff
to inquire about
their validity," Ig-
natieff said in a
statement.
"As a result, Mr.
Forbes has been
informed that he is
no longer a candi-
date for the Liberal Party of Canada.
Mr. Forbes' comments have no place
within the Liberal Party of Canada."
Forbes, who is Metis, founded
an association called the "Rights of
Whites" and made a series of
allegedly racist comments which
came back to haunt him after the
NDP brought them to light.
"We all know that the aborig-
inals will not keep their jobs . . . I
have worked for many years for Gulf
Paper of Clarke City, which closed in
1968. Many Montagnais worked
there. I only remember one who did a
good job," Forbes is quoted as saying
in Le Soleil newspaper in March
2002.
According to the NDP, an-
other organization Forbes ran Metis
Cote-Nord also suggested in a letter
to Hydro-Quebec in January 2009
that: "If our Metis community was
formed of Muslims, homosexuals or
of an association of elderly ladies
making moccasins out of caribou
skin, would Hydro-Quebec consult
with us? Yes."
A Liberal MP and Incumbent
from BRAMLEA-GORE-MALTON
Gurbax Malhi, is under attack for
calling conservative candidate Bal
Gosal a “barking dog” in Ankhila
Punjab radio interview. NDP
candidate is asking Mr. Malhi to
apologoze from the constituents.
Liberal Candidate fired for bad behaviour
Reisterstown, MD: On January 10, 2011, Harpreet
Singh was visiting a 7/11 to purchase anti-freeze. That
morning, along with his flowing beard, he was wearing
a white kurta and a white dastaar. Based on the police's
probable cause report, it seemed that an officer saw Mr.
Singh entering the 7/11 and followed him into the con-
venience store. Noticing the handle of Harpreet's kirpan
under his jacket, the officer immediately called for
back-up, took Harpreet outside, and questioned him
about the kirpan. Even after Harpreet provided an ex-
planation that the kirpan was an article of faith and how
it reminds a Sikh of their obligation to uphold the basic
dignity of all human beings, Harpreet was arrested and
his kirpan forcibly seized from his person.After receiv-
ing communications from Harpreet Singh and his attor-
ney, Michael Cerri, UNITED SIKHS felt "compelled
to voice our concern on behalf of the Sikh community
because the kirpan was incorrectly being equated with
a dangerous weapon instead of being recognized as an
article of faith and an inextricable part of the Sikh iden-
tity," said Senior Staff Attorney Hansdeep Singh.
UNITED SIKHS drafted a letter to Assistant
State's Attorney Jared Green pointing out that since
9/11, at least 22 kirpan cases have been dismissed na-
tion wide indicating that many courts have found that
the prosecution of a Sikh for wearing his/ her article of
faith would result in injustice. Fortunately, through the
efforts of Mr. Cerri and the assistance of the UNITED
SIKHS legal team (ICHRA), Mr. Singh's case was
promptly dropped. It is also important to recognize that
prosecutors have broad jurisdiction in making the de-
cision to pursue or drop criminal cases and we are grate-
ful for the measured approach taken by Mr. Green in
this instance. After having his kirpan returned to him,
Harpreet Singh's resolve remained firm and unshaken
and he discussed the importance of his article of faith.
"The kirpan symbolizes the highest ideals for the ben-
efit of humanity . . . as a Sikh it is our duty to protect
the rights of others [so that we may live in a] world
without hatred, injustice, and oppression."
UNITED SIKHS Intervenesand Assists in Preventing
the State of Maryland fromCriminalizing the Kirpan:
On Jan. 10, 2011, Harpreet Singh was arrestedfor wearing a kirpan (one of five articles of
faith) after an officer saw it under his jacket ata 7/11.UNITED SIKHS joined the case in an ad-visory capacity and submitted a letter to the Of-fice of the State's Attorney to dismiss charges.
08 April 07, 2011 Courageous Journalism
‘Some operatives are engaged in the ‘statistical ethniccleansing’ of the worlds’ Sikhs! They MUST be stopped!in the above paragraph) and published
in the prestigious ‘2009 New York
Times World Almanac And Book Of
Facts’, page 682 (Library of Congress
Catalog Card No. 43781: Soft-cover
ISBN-10: 1-60057-105-0: ISBN 13:
978-1- 60057-105-3). About Three
million Sikhs just disappeared from
the face of the earth – statistically
‘cleansed’ as a consequence! These
reduced numbers were also sourced to
the prestigious and widely used 2008
Encyclopedia Britannica by the ‘2009
New York Times World Almanac And
Book Of Facts’. A telephone call was
made to The World Almanac Books
publisher of the Almanac in New
York (which was attended by an em-
ployee with an accent) who was
asked to correct the false (reduced)
entry for the world’s Sikh population.
He promised to look into it.
He did’nt!
One year later, in 2010, in-
stead of making a correction, or mak-
ing amends, the ‘2010 New York
Times World Almanac And Book Of
Facts’, page 705 (Library of Congress
Catalog Card No. 4-378: Soft-cover
ISBN-13: 978-1-123-7 :: ISBN-10: 1-
123-9) had the chutzpah to repeat the
previous years 22, 927, 500 figure,
without a + or – change, as the num-
ber of Sikhs in the world stood still at
the number of 22, 927, 500. This
grave error was again brought to the
attention of World Almanac Books,
the publishers of the 2010 New York
Times World Almanac And Book
Of Facts.
However, after repeated tele-
phone calls, the “2011 New York
Times World Almanac And Book Of
Facts’ page 698 (Library of Congress
ISBN-13: 978-1-60057-134-3 ::
ISBN-10: 1-60057-134-4) has grudg-
ingly shown the world-wide Sikh
population as being 24, 222, 700,
which number is still short by one
million, six hundred fifty seven thou-
sand from the published 2008 figure,
of 25, 880, 100 Sikhs. Prior to 2008
Almanac the number of Sikhs in the
world had been increasing by about
five to seven hundred thousand every
year. The correct number of the
worlds’ Sikhs, for 2011, with the nor-
mal Punjabi increase, should have
been around + or – around 28 million.
Nobody in this world is interested in
reducing the number of the worlds’
Sikhs by use of statistics except the
Indian rulers who want to make the
Sikhs a minority in the strategic Sikh
homeland of Punjab, Khalistan which
borders Pakistan. Going by the
‘Duck’ adage that ‘if it walks like a
duck, looks like a duck, quacks like a
duck – it is a duck’.
It is obvious this ‘statistical’
assault on the world’s Sikhs, has been
sponsored and carried out by some
minions of the Indian government as
the ‘finger prints’ of the rogue Indian
Intelligence agency - RAW – are vis-
ible all over this episode. Sikh com-
patriots in the legal profession, who
read this column in the United States
and Canada ought to have a ‘look see’
so that the matter can be properly pur-
sued through the courts.
Getting back to the first re-
sults of the ongoing (2010) census,
announced last Thursday, (mentioned
in paragraph one above) the 2010 ac-
tual Indian census population figure
of one billion, two hundred and ten
million far exceeds the projected
2010 population figure for India of
one billion one hundred and seventy
three million, which had been fore-
cast by the prestigious ‘Population
Division/International Programs cen-
ter of the U.S. Census Bureau; U.S.
Department of Commerce. (See ‘pop-
ulation forecast’ for 2010 for India on
page 732 of “2011 New York Times
World Almanac And Book Of Facts’).
These (population) numbers are
quoted and used by the U.N. Devel-
opment Program and other world
bodies and any excessive change puts
a black mark on India’s so called
growth ‘story’.
See a report, full of lies in the
Wall Street Journal, by Tripti Lahiri,
published last weekend, headlined
‘India passes 1.2 billion mark’ ‘which
says that, which exposes Indian
shenanigans in the literacy field.
PM offers loans to transfer credentialsevents and why several people were
barred from an event in London,
Ont. earlier in the week.
Harper responded that local
organizers are responsible for secu-
rity, but emphasized there are "liter-
ally thousands of people coming out
to these events."
Similar to Tuesday, he de-
clined to comment on what took
place in London or respond when
asked whether staff actually check
attendees' Facebook accounts. One
of those barred from the London
event had posted a picture on Face-
book with Liberal Leader Michael
Ignatieff. "I think it's better when
you're turning people away than
when you can't get people to come
but as I say I don't want to comment
on individual cases," Harper said.
Ignatieff is continuing his
tour of Quebec on Wednesday, at-
tempting to drive home his message
to rural voters that the Bloc Quebe-
cois and Conservatives are out of
touch with their values. Ignatieff
was in Quebec's Eastern Townships
of Compton and Brossard. Speaking
in Compton, he touted the Liberals'
plan for farmers saying his govern-
ment would once again make agri-
culture a priority with flexible
funding for "practical, predictable
programs, such as the Ontario Risk
Management Program," according
to a news release. "A Liberal gov-
ernment will be there for flexible,
bankable farm programs built from
the 'farm up, not Ottawa down,'" Ig-
natieff said. New Democrat Leader
Jack Layton was in Prince George,
B.C. Wednesday. He introduced a
measure to boost access to home
care for seniors, add home care and
long-term care to the Canada Health
Act, set up a long-term care transfer
and double the loan program for
families renovating to keep older
relatives in their homes. "Our Qual-
ity Home Care Plan and new Long-
Term Care Initiative will show real
leadership on health care for seniors
and help families caring for older
relatives at home," Layton said. In-
creasingly both Harper and Ignatieff
have attempted to push the other
leaders out of the equation, pitting
the race as a two-way competition
with them as the only possible win-
ners. Harper has emphasized that
only a Conservative majority gov-
ernment will truly be able to fulfill
the party's mandate. Ignatieff has in-
vited Canadians to come into the
"big red tent" and vote Liberal as the
only way of stopping Harper from
getting the majority he is seeking.
April 07, 2011 09 Courageous Journalism
Pam Hundal said
that Brampton families are
tired of getting stuck paying
the bill for Dalton
McGuinty’s legacy of waste,
which has tarred everything
from Ontario’s health care
system to its hydro system,
and they will send that mes-
sage loud and clear to the
Liberal party on October
6th, 2011.
Last week’s Sunshine List
revealed two key players in
the billion-dollar eHealth
boondoggle continued to get
rich off of health care dol-
lars in 2010. Former eHealth
CEO Sarah Kramer received
$107,000 from the eHealth
in 2010 despite being fired
in 2009. And former Deputy
Minister of Health Ron
Sapsford, who left his job in
the wake of the Liberal
eHealth scandal in January
2010, was paid $763,000 for
2010.
QUOTES:
Pam Hundal agrees with
Provincial PC Leader Tim
Hudak when he says that
“Instead of trying to be all
things to all people, govern-
ment has to focus on the ba-
sics, on services people
actually care about and
need,” Pam Hundal feels
that the people of Brampton
Springdale will agree with
her when she states “Far too
much money is going into
waste and bureaucracy and
The provincial government
has become too big, too ex-
pensive and too clumsy"]
QUICK FACTS:
· The 2011 Sunshine List
revealed former eHealth
boss Sarah Kramer was paid
$106,692 in 2010 despite
being fired from the job in
2009.
· Former Deputy Minis-
ter of Health Ron Sapsford
was paid $672,916.73 in
salary and $89,152.13 in
taxable benefits in 2010, de-
spite leaving the job in Jan-
uary that year.
· An Ontario Energy
Board report, released on
March 3, 2010, shows the
cost of installing so-called
smart meters on Ontario
homes and small businesses
reached over $994.4 million
as of September 2010.
Pam Hundal " It is appalling
to think that while families
all across Brampton and On-
tario suffer and have to work
2 jobs in order to keep up
with their bills and budget,
while the Liberals continue
to pay salaries to Govern-
ment employees far higher
than most people working in
the private sector. Govern-
ment needs o be downsized
and so that tax payers
money can go towards areas
needed the most such as
front line healtcare"
Pam Hundal says Brampton Families Stuck withthe Bill for Dalton McGuinty’s Legacy of Waste
United Sikhs Files Criminal Complaint Against Punjab Police
Sikhs Seek Con-
crete Measures from
Governments of
Panjab and India to
Ensure that the Pun-
jab Police Uphold
Religious Freedom
Mohali, Panjab,
India: UNITED
SIKHS has filed
today a criminal
complaint with the
Mohali Judicial
Magistrate First
Class about the will-
ful public removal
of a Sikh’s Turban
by a Punjab Police
officer, who said he
was acting on the
instructions of a po-
lice superintendent.
The Magistrate has
ordered the Police
to respond with a re-
port on the next
hearing date, 16th
April 2011. This in-
cident that has hurt
the religious senti-
ments of the global
Sikh Community, is
an affront to a com-
munity that consid-
ers Panjab as its
homeland and the
birthplace of its reli-
gion.
The incident in
question took place
on March 28, 2011
near the PCA sta-
dium, Mohali, Pan-
jab. A Sikh youth,
participating in a
peaceful sit-in
staged by re-
trenched rural vet-
erinary pharmacists
and employees, was
pulled aside by po-
lice officials and his
Turban was forcibly
removed without
cause. The police
official responsible
for the act is a Mo-
hali Phase VIII Sta-
tion House Officer
(SHO), Sub-Inspec-
tor Kulbhushan, and
he said he acted on
orders from Mohali
Superintendent of
Police (SP)- Pritam
Singh to remove the
turban of the Sikh
individual who had
requested that his
turban not be
touched.
United Sikhs’
Chandigarh based
lawyer, Sukhwinder
Singh, filed the
complaint with Ju-
dicial Magistrates
First Class, Mohali,
Panjab, under Sec-
tion 295 A of the In-
dian Penal Code on
grounds that the
Punjab Police offi-
cer’s removal of the
Sikh’s turban was a
deliberate and mali-
cious act, intended
to outrage religious
feelings of Sikhs by
insulting their reli-
gious beliefs.
“The Sikh Commu-
nity is fighting for
justice and recogni-
tion as a distinct en-
tity globally amidst
challenges to the
wearing of the tur-
ban post 9/11. How-
ever, it least expects
disrespect to its arti-
cles of faith in Pan-
jab, where most
Sikhs originate
from,” said Mejin-
darpal Kaur, United
Sikhs Legal Direc-
tor.
In response to
mounting pressure,
the Panjab Home
Minister, Sukhbir
Singh Badal, has
announced suspen-
sion of the two offi-
cers and a magiste-
rial inquiry into the
incident. The action
is however not
enough to redress
the issue of protect-
ing the Sikh identity
in Punjab. Earlier
this year, the
Chandigarh Police
removed the turban
of another Sikh who
was a pillion rider in
order to prove his
Sikh identity, as ev-
idenced in the video
on you tube.
“The Punjab Police
officers cannot be
allowed to get off
lightly with a sus-
pension. This inci-
dent is not isolated
and there is a need
for a root and
branch reform of the
Punjab Police Rules
with respect to pro-
tecting religious
freedom, ” Mejin-
darpal added.
10 April 07, 2011 Courageous Journalism
Pakistan to revisit Bhutto death sentence caseCultural festival ‘JUSTICE
ON TRIAL’ began todayThe three day cultural festival ‘JUSTICE ON
TRIAL’ began today with a massive partici-
pation of civil society, youth and eminent
artists, writers, photographers and perform-
ers.
Some of the top Indian artists and photogra-
phers contributed their original works for dis-
play at a special exhibition in solidarity with
Dr Binayak Sen and on the theme of human
rights and freedom. The work will be on ex-
hibit for three days from 4-6 April, 2011 at
the Alliance Francaise Art Gallery and is
open to all members of the public to visit.
Artists include Subodh Gupta, T.V.Santosh,
Bharti Kher, Probir Gupta, Gigi Scaria, Mithu
Sen, Sharmila Samant, Shreyas Karle, Su-
santa Mondal among others; photos include
those by Prashant Panjiar, Pablo
Bartholomew, Parthiv Shah and Ram Rah-
man. The artists in a statement said, “ The
Sedition Law directly attacks the freedom of
expression, and is therefore impossible to
reconcile with the conditions necessary for a
healthy atmosphere for culture, art and intel-
lectual life”.
They go on to say, “ No civilized society
sends an individual like Dr Binayak Sen to
prison for doing what can only be regarded
as his duty as a medical professional and as a
civil rights activist. If it can happen to Bi-
nayak Sen today, it can happen to anyone to-
morrow”.
On the first day of the three-day cultural fes-
tival of protest a panel discussion was held
with participation from Dr Ilina Sen,
Supreme Court lawyer Vrinda Grover and
well known social activist and National Ad-
visory Council member Aruna Roy.
In a statement issued to the media Dr Ilina
Sen said, “Binayak’s story illustrates the ex-
treme paranoia with which sections of our
political leadership and bureaucracy react
when they find that the writ of their unac-
countable power stands challenged.” Accord-
ing to her it was a sad reflection on our
system that once a false case is registered in
the name of security, it is almost impossible
to turn the clock back, even if facts stare us
in the face and indicate that the case had no
basis.”
Pavan Kumar’s award winning film ‘AFSPA,
1958’ was screened while Manipuri youth
band ‘Imphal Talkies’ performed at the event.
The second and third day of the cultural fes-
tival will see eminent film personalities and
social activists join artists, writers and per-
formers express their views on issues of free-
dom, human rights and democracy in the
context of Dr Binayak Sen’s controversial
conviction in Chhattisgarh late last year. On
6 April at 5.30 PM film maker Anand Pat-
wardhan and veteran actress Sharmila Tagore
will address a press conference at the venue
of the festival.
Three days
ahead of the
32nd death an-
niversary of
Pakistan’s first
directly elected
Prime Minister
Zulfikar Ali
Bhutto, the fed-
eral government
on Friday de-
cided to “re-
visit” his death
sentence by
making a reference
to the Supreme
Court.
Invoking Article 186
of the Constitution,
President Asif Ali
Zardari signed the
reference; seeking
the Supreme Court’s
opinion on the death
sentence by the La-
hore High Court
which was subse-
quently upheld by
the Apex Court in
March 1979. Bhutto
was hanged to death
on April 4, 1979.
Earlier this week, the
federal cabinet had
authorised the Presi-
dent to send such a
reference to the
Supreme Court
under Article 186
which states that “if,
at any time, the Pres-
ident considers that it
is desirable to obtain
the opinion of the
Supreme Court on
any question of law
which he considers
of public impor-
tance, he may refer
the question to the
Supreme Court for
consideration”.
The Pakistan Peo-
ple’s Party has al-
ways held that
Bhutto’s hanging
was a “judicial mur-
der” authored by the
then martial ruler
Zia-ul Haq. Given
that this much-talked
about reference –
billed as reopening a
three-decade-old
case -- has been crit-
icized in some quar-
ters as an exercise in
futility and a gim-
mick to divert atten-
tion from the
omissions and com-
missions of the PPP-
led federal
government, Presi-
dential spokesman
Farhatullah Babar
said the aim was
only to set the record
straight.
“The PPP had never
intended to
seek revenge
but it wanted to
put right a his-
toric wrong and
thereby vindi-
cate the posi-
tion of the
founding chair-
man of the
party,” Mr.
Babar said,
pointing out
that a former
judge of the Bench
of the Supreme
Court which upheld
the death sentence
had subsequently
publicly acknowl-
edged that the split
verdict was given
under pressure of the
dictatorship of the
time. Also, serious
reservations had
been expressed by
international jurists
about the legal pro-
priety of the death
sentence awarded to
Bhutto for allegedly
authorising the mur-
der of a political op-
ponent.
New Delhi: Punjab
Chief Minister Mr.
Parkash Singh Badal
today impressed
upon thePrime Minis-
ter Dr. Manmohan
Singh to immediately
direct the concerned
authorities to expedite
movement of food-
grain from Punjab
and to augment the
storage space in the
state.
Mr. Badal along with
Deputy Chief Minister
Mr. Sukhbir Singh
Badal raised this
issue with the Prime
Minister when they
called on him at his
residence this morn-
ing.
Disclosing this here
today a spokesperson
of the Chief Minster’s
Office said that Mr.
Badal also urged the
Prime Minister to also
accord approval for
the construction of
covered godowns as
per the proposal of
state government at
the earliest.
Mr. Badal also
apprised the Prime
Minister that Punjab
was suffering on two
accounts, the state
was not getting ade-
quate and quick
movement of food-
grain on one hand
and on the other hand
the Government of
India has not yet ac-
corded the necessary
approval for construc-
tion of storage capac-
ity.
Allaying fears in such
a scenario, Mr. Badal
said that it would be
difficult for Punjab to
procure and store the
recent crops that may
lead to farmer unrest
and serious law and
order problem in this
border state. He re-
quested the Prime
Minister to immedi-
ately accept the pro-
posal of state
government for stor-
age capacity in the
larger interest of the
storage of foodgrains
and national food se-
curity otherwise dur-
ing the ensuing paddy
season, there would
be total chaos jeop-
ardizing the law and
order situation, if
paddy was not lifted
from the mandis.
It may be recalled that
Punjab was facing
acute shortage of
space for the storage
of foodgrains. As per
a survey conducted
by Govt. of India/FCI
Punjab was having a
shortage to the tune
of 71 Lac MT. In view
of this alarming short-
age the state procure-
ment agencies were
compelled to store
wheat in open and
even on unscientific
plinths such as rice
mills, mandi yards,
katcha plinths etc. At
present more than
90% of wheat storage
in Punjab wais in
open. The shortage of
covered space was
adversely affecting
the rice acceptance in
the central pool. The
storage of foodgrains
in open and in the rice
mills leads to deterio-
ration in the quality of
grain and rotting.
The Chief Minister
also informed Dr.
Singh that realizing
the urgency of stor-
age needs, the Pun-
jab government has
floated tenders for
construction of cov-
ered godowns under
PEG Scheme of
Govt. of India for a ca-
pacity of 71 Lac MT.
However, this capac-
ity have been re-
duced to 51 Lac MT
by GoI without any
consultation with the
state government.
The FCI has finalized
a capacity of only 13
Lac MT in the state at
a rent rate upto Rs.
5.00 per quintal per
month after a long
cumbersome proce-
dure of the tender at
only 14 storage cen-
tres of Punjab. Al-
though the state
government has re-
quested FCI to allow
this rent rate for other
storage centres also,
so that additional ca-
pacity of around 35
lac MT could be made
available but no posi-
tive response has
been received from
FCI/GoI as yet.
April 07, 2011 11 Courageous Journalism
Cm Seek Dr. Manmohan Singh’s Intervention
Vancouver, CANADA : Two po-
lice officers who tore off a Sikh’s
turban on Monday during a
peaceful rally by pharmacy stu-
dents in Mohali, Punjab were
suspended with pay. They
should be fired, say leaders of
the Canadian Sikh Coalition.
“The state security forces are
stooges for a caste-focused cen-
tral government,” said Moninder
Singh, Spokesperson for CSC.
“Since Article 25 of India’s con-
stitution identifies all anti-caste
religions founded in India as
Hindu, the security forces attack
religious symbols that show we
are actually distinct. Video of the
police attack shows that Sikhs
respond with peaceful non-resis-
tance even though the Indian
state does all it can to publicly
degrade their beliefs.”
The video, available on
YouTube, shows a uniformed po-
lice officer roughly escorting a
cooperative Sikh man as a
clean-shaven officer tears off his
turban. One of the most conspic-
uous emblems of a Sikh’s faith,
the turban represented nobility
for victims of caste discrimina-
tion. Religious freedom viola-
tions occur regularly in Punjab
and other states of India. Recent
examples include YouTube
footage of uniformed officers in
Orissa driving Christians out of a
church with lathis and the death
in mid-March of Sohan Singh, a
Sikh arrested and held without
charges for a week before al-
legedly dying from police torture.
Jitender Singh Grewal, Director
of CSC (East), called the sus-
pension given the two offending
officers a “paid holiday.” State of-
ficials ordered a probe of SP Pri-
tam Singh and SHO Kulbhushan
Singh, the offending officers, but
Grewal warned they will return to
work without further repercus-
sions once media attention
fades. “These officers should be
dismissed from their positions in
disgrace and their supervisors
investigated and then charged,”
commented Grewal.
Turban santching by Police infringes
religious rights: Canadian Sikh Coalition
12 April 07, 2011 Courageous Journalism
Montréal, – This
morning, as part of
an investigation into
offences under the
Criminal Code and
the Canada Post Cor-
poration Act, officers
of the Montréal
RCMP, with the co-
operation of several
municipal police
services, made two
arrests and con-
ducted 24 searches
in businesses and
convenience stores
in the greater Mon-
tréal area. The pur-
pose of this
operation was to pre-
vent the illegal sale
and distribution of
counterfeit and
reused stamps.
Following an inter-
nal investigation by
Canada Post, postal
inspectors requested
the assistance of the
RCMP Federal In-
vestigation Section
which examined the
possibility that a net-
work engaged in the
sale of counterfeit
stamps might be ac-
tive in the Montréal
and Toronto areas. A
recent investigation
by the Service de po-
lice de la Ville de
Montréal, under
Project ACCES, had
also uncovered ac-
tivities connected to
the sale of counter-
feit stamps. This in-
formation was used
for the RCMP inves-
tigation.
Based on the parallel
investigations by the
Montréal and
Toronto RCMP, it
appears that the
stamps seized origi-
nated from the same
source of distribu-
tion. The stamps fea-
ture the same series
of images, i.e. a por-
trait of the Queen,
images of the Van-
couver Olympics,
and photos of Cana-
dian lighthouses.
The stamps were
sold in convenience
stores individually or
in booklets of ten. A
Canada Post fran-
chise is one of the
businesses targeted
by the investigation.
Reused stamps were
sold on the Internet.
Since the beginning
of the investigation
in May 2010, a total
of more than 40,000
counterfeit stamps
and 10,000 reused
stamps have been
seized in Montréal
and Toronto, and
five individuals have
been arrested.
Charges were filed
today in Toronto
against two of the
suspects and one in-
dividual has already
been charged in
Montréal.
The other individu-
als arrested as a re-
sult of this morning’s
operation could also
be charged with traf-
ficking in counterfeit
tokens of value and
selling stamps with-
out the consent of
Canada Post. The
RCMP investigation,
in close collabora-
tion with Canada
Post, continues and
more charges could
be filed when it is
completed.
Canada Post is
pleased with the re-
sults of the investiga-
tion that will put an
end to the illegal ac-
tivities of selling
counterfeit or reused
stamps in the Mon-
treal and Toronto
areas. In the last few
months, Canada Post
Postal Inspectors
have worked in col-
laboration with the
RCMP to identify
the culprits.
Thousands Of Counterfeit PostageStamps Seized In Montréal And Toronto
Hoskins: Federal Stalling Leads ToImmigration Agreement Expiry
Dr. Eric Hoskins, Ontario’s Minister of Citizenship and ImmigrationOn March 31, Ontario’s im-
migration agreement with
the federal government ex-
pired. For months, the
McGuinty government has
been fighting for a new deal
from the Harper govern-
ment – one that would treat
Ontario’s newcomers fairly
and give them the support
and services they need to
find jobs here in Ontario,
and contribute to our
province’s economy.
We have been fighting for
our newcomers because we
know that immigration is an
economic imperative. We
value all of our newcomers,
and we want to ensure that
they have the opportunity to
succeed in Ontario.
Unfortunately, when the
Harper government finally
came to the negotiating
table, they were completely
inflexible on all of the
points that Ontario raised
on behalf of our newcom-
ers, and their inflexibility is
the reason we couldn’t
reach a deal before the fed-
eral election.
The Federal Conservatives
unilaterally imposed a $44
million cut to settlement
services in Ontario that help
our newcomers adjust to
life in their new home, find
jobs, and learn a new lan-
guage. This cut comes on
top of a promised $207 mil-
lion that the Harper govern-
ment failed to spend on
services that help Ontario’s
newcomers succeed.
The Harper government has
refused to reach a new im-
migration deal that treats
Ontario and our newcomers
the same way they treat
newcomers in provinces
like British Columbia,
Manitoba, and Quebec.
For example, in Quebec the
Harper government spends
one and a half times more
per immigrant than for a
newcomer in Ontario. That
funding goes toward settle-
ment and training programs
– programs that help new-
comers succeed. Ontario is
fighting for a deal that sees
the federal government
treat our newcomers fairly.
But Prime Minister Harper
won’t agree.
A few months ago, Canadi-
ans learned that the federal
government planned to sig-
nificantly reduce the num-
ber of Federal Skilled
Workers it would admit to
Canada, as well as reducing
the number of families it
would re-unite by admitting
parents and grand-parents.
The Harper Conservatives
made these decisions with-
out consulting Ontario, and
they are decisions that hurt
our newcomers and hurt
Ontario’s economic future.
We need a stronger voice so
that we can stand up for
Ontario’s newcomers on the
issue of selection, but Prime
Minister Harper won’t
agree.
April 07, 2011 13 Courageous Journalism
It is not surprising that obesity, a
major risk factor for heart disease, di-
abetes and other serious chronic dis-
eases, is on the rise. There are many
reasons for the rise in obesity, but one
major contributor is poor eating
habits.
But did you know that youth
in our area are not excluded from this
alarming medical trend,
as almost 20 per cent of
youth in Brampton, Eto-
bicoke and the sur-
rounding communities
are either overweight or
obese.
This statistic is
of particular concern to
the South Asian com-
munity. According to
the Canadian Medical
Association Journal
(CMAJ), people of South Asian de-
scent are at a greater risk of develop-
ing heart disease more often, and at
an earlier age, than any other commu-
nity group.
Even though the number of
youth that are either overweight or
obese is growing, there are a number
of actions you can take and resources
available to help your child maintain
a healthy weight and make good de-
cisions about nutrition.
When counseling families
about better food choices, dietitians at
William Osler Health System (Osler)
often encourage families to make one
or two small changes at a time. This
strategy is often more successful than
making a number of lifestyle changes
all at once.
One simple and often
overlooked change you can
make at home is to change what
you drink. For instance, decreas-
ing the amount of juice, sweet
beverages and pop that your
family consumes can have significant
positive health impacts. For your
families’ health, it is optimum
to decrease these beverages to
once a week, or even totally
eliminate the consumption of
these sugary beverages. Also,
when your child is thirsty,
water is always the best op-
tion.
Are you facing the challenge
of getting a picky eater to eat
fruits and vegetables? If so,
involve them in the planning
and preparation of meals. In-
vite them to go grocery shopping; let
them choose family meals once in a
while and get them to help with meal
preparation. Getting a picky eater in-
volved in the kitchen may make them
more willing to try foods that they
would otherwise avoid.
No doubt trying to curb un-
healthy eating is difficult; it often
takes many small steps to get to a
point where they can have a big im-
pact. If you are concerned about your
child’s weight and feel that it is affect-
ing, or may affect their health, then
please contact your family physician.
One resource available for
families in the community is Osler’s
Lifestyle Clinic, specializing in infor-
mation for individuals ages five to 17.
The Lifestyle Clinic is a unique two-
year program, where families receive
consultation from a variety of health
care experts to help them make
healthy lifestyle changes. You need a
referral by your family physician or
paediatrician to access the clinic.
Weighing in on childhood obesity in our community
14 April 07, 2011 Courageous Journalism
Gliding along a highway at
speed in a Mercedes-Benz
automobile is a unique expe-
rience. Paragons of comfort,
smoothness and control,
there’s a reason they cost
more. And while all the cars
that wear the three-pointed
star truly come into their
own at elevated speeds, this
is particularly true for the
turbodiesel-powered Mer-
cedes-Benz E350 BlueTec.
At startup and around town,
a most un-Mercedes-like
clatter raucously emerges
from the engine compart-
ment. It’s so loud, you might
even think something is
wrong with the engine; par-
ticularly when considered in
comparison to the sophisti-
cation of the manufacturer’s
gasoline-fired powerplants.
Around town, the sewing
machine on steroids sound is
readily transmitted through
the firewall of the mid-size
Benz. Eerily though, once
you attain cruising speed on
the highway, the sound drops
away completely. On the
freeway, all you hear is the
whisper of the slipstream as
it lovingly caresses the slip-
pery shape of the comely
sedan.
And while that might be a
high price for drivers who
spend more time in urban
traffic than on the highway,
it's a cost that comes with a
considerable benefit. In ex-
change for its noisier opera-
tion around town, our test car
returned an
average fuel
consumption
of 25.7-mpg
overall. That
i n c l u d e s
driving in
stop and go
city traffic,
accelerating
briskly onto
h i g h w a y s ,
and cruising
between 70
and 80 mph
on the highway. Taken with
the 23.5-gallon capacity of
the fuel tank, this gives the
car an effective range of over
600 miles without stopping.
You could drive it from San
Francisco to San Diego and
still have around 100 miles
left in the tank. The EPA
rates the car at 22-city, 33-
highway and 26 combined.
This efficient 3.5-liter turbo-
diesel V6 makes 210 horse-
power at 3.400 rpm and 400
ft-lbs of torque from 1,800 to
2,400 rpm. And while 60
takes a relatively leisurely
6.7 seconds to attain from
rest, the BlueTec E350 read-
ily pulls to its electronically
limited top speed of 130
miles per hour. The car just
keeps going faster and faster
and faster—pulling like the
proverbial freight train.
Plus, the E350 BlueTec is an
E-Class Benz—this means
you also enjoy the benefits of
all of the attributes that ac-
company a Mercedes-Benz
automobile. Our test car fea-
tured a 40-gig hard drive for
entertainment, Bluetooth,
Sat Radio, Dolby-Digital 5.1
Surround Audio, Voice Con-
trol, Keyless Go, and GPS
Nav, in addition to all the
other typical features you ex-
pect in a modern luxury car.
A soft band of golden light
emanates from beneath the
wood trim that encircles the
cabin at night. A nice accent,
it's a very pleasant effect. All
four door armrests are illu-
minated as well—and yes,
that's the entire armrest.
These are the sorts of details
that set this class of car apart
and make you feel special
when you're inside it.
Around town, despite the
muted clat-
ter from
the engine
c o m p a r t -
ment, driv-
ing the
BlueTec E-
Class is a
breeze. No
manufac-
turer builds
an easier
car to oper-
ate in
urban traf-
fic than Mercedes-Benz.
Need a U-Turn? You can pop
one off in an unbelievably
small space. In one situation,
we went directly into a U-
turn from a parking space,
completing the maneuver in
one pass—with more than
half a lane to spare.
Solidly planted at highway
speeds, the faster you go the
more stable the Mercedes
becomes. The sedan goes
down the road so fluidly and
gracefully, you almost ex-
pect to look out and see an-
gels clearing a path for you.
When changes of direction
are required, the E350 re-
sponds unhesitatingly. You
always feel connected di-
rectly to the road. The driv-
ing position is excellent, the
instrumentation is easily de-
cipherable, and all the con-
trols are intuitive in their
operation. The car does ab-
solutely nothing to induce fa-
tigue or incite anxiety.
With fuel prices running
north of four dollars a gallon,
truly economical cars are
going to find themselves in
great demand once again. If
you’re looking to maximize
your MPG without sacrific-
ing your S-T-Y-L-E, the
Mercedes-Benz E350
BlueTec is a car you’d do
well to consider. The Mer-
cedes is economical to oper-
ate and outstanding both on
the highway and around
town. It also delivers superb
comfort, along with a broad
array of the latest safety fea-
tures. If you can put up with
a bit of diesel clatter around
town, this Benz might well
be the car for you.
Auto Section
2011 Mercedes-Benz E350 BlueTec Review
Actor Rani Mukerji has in the past said that she
is pretty fed up of people asking her as to when
she will be tying the knot. But it looks like the
actor has finally learnt to take the interest in her
personal life with a pinch of salt or maybe she
has just learnt the art of hiding her irritation
with clever answers.
A source says that Rani recently made an ap-
pearance for the launch of a diamond brand and
she was armed with witty answers to throw at
whoever dared to ask her about her shaadi.
Rani, says the source, was initially in two
minds as to how to tackle shaadi-related
queries. At first, she apparently thought of
snubbing curious cats by giving them a cold
shoulder but eventually she was in such a good
mood that she brought up the topic herself.
"Rani said that she believes in the idea of mar-
riage and that everything will happen when the
time is right. She even pointed out that she
doesn't wear any ring on her ring finger. The
reason she said was that she's saving it for
someone special in her life," says an onlooker
who was present at the venue. The next question obviously
was when she was planning to settle down and with whom,
considering that one hears about her impending marriage
plans almost everyday.
The petite actor said that whoever wants to know that will
have to set up a teleconference with God to know that. Is
that whom we see you talking to while you're glued on the
phone, Rani?
April 07, 2011 15 Courageous Journalism
Actor Asin has earned the tag of
being a Khan favourite, what with
her making her debut with actor
Aamir Khan with film Ghajini and
later, actor Salman Khan with whom
she's working yet again in film-
Ready. Could whispers of a rumour
between them be far behind? To
which she responds, " I don't care,"
defiantly adding, "These are fig-
ments of some nasty minds. As an
actor you are linked up with almost
every other actor."
And what about her being Salman's
blue-eyed girl? "I am very fond of
Salman," gushes the actor. "He is a
sweetheart. I was unwell while
shooting for Ready in Sri Lanka and
Thailand, and he would always re-
mind me to take my medicines and
also ensure that I have them in front
of him. Salman is a very caring per-
son. In fact at times, I wonder why
he is called the bad boy of Bolly-
wood."
So is gossip about actor Neil Nitin
Mukesh and her affair true? "Rub-
bish! Neil is a very good friend. We
meet, have dinners and chat, that
doesn't mean we are going around. I
guess these gossip mongers have for-
gotten about a term called 'friend'. If
I am seeing someone I will happily
acknowledge it. Isn't finding a great
partner something to be happy about
rather than hiding it?" she retorts.
Recently there were also reports of
Asin being insecure about her posi-
tion in Bollywood. "Insecure and
me? Such stories make me laugh. I
am the last person on this earth to be
insecure as an actor or as an individ-
ual. I am very happy and content in
my space," she says
South hottie Asin takes up for friends in B-Town;also pens an open letter to friend Dhoni's Team
India, our cricket world champions
'I am very fond of Salman'
Industry ex-perts give ustheir take onwhich crick-eter from the
World Cupwinning
brigade haswhat it takes
to light up thebig screen as
well...
Cricketers we want tosee on the silver screen
Post the cricket
World Cup triumph,
the nation and the
players are busy in
an extended revelry
of sorts. Not that it
means that the
cricketers were
worshipped any less
earlier, but with the
recent victory, their
stardom seems to
have grown mani-
fold.
And it has almost
become an accept-
able trend to see
cricket stars, their
abilities on the field
regardless, take on
the television terri-
tory or the Bolly-
wood domain.
Ex-cricketers Salil
Ankola took to
movies following a
not-so-bright run on the
cricket field; Angad Bedi
(who played domestic cricket
but couldn't get into the na-
tional team) is a well known
name on television and re-
cently made his Bollywood
debut; Navjot Singh Siddhu
has become more popular for
his roaring laughter and jokes
on television now — so much
so that it has overpowered his
cricketing background and has
got him branded him as a co-
median instead.
Even a cricketer like Sunil
Gavaskar, with an enviable ca-
reer graph did a Marathi film,
just after he resigned from the
then-Indian cricket team.
Cricketer Sreesanth too was
rumoured to be interested in
doing a South Indian film.
So who is capable of making
the big cut from the present
brigade? Trade analyst Taran
Adarsh roots for young crick-
eter Virat Kohli as the next big
star! "When I look at him, I
think he's a star. He's a very
good looking guy, perhaps
better-looking than most of
our Bollywood stars put to-
gether. The way he walks, the
way he walks — he's a star,"
he says.
Film-maker Vikram Bhatt, on
the other hand, is of a different
opinion. "Cricketers would
make for bad actors! Picking a
cricketer merely because of
his looks is equivalent to hav-
ing an actor of Aamir Khan's
acting talent play the opening
set in a game of cricket."
"I'm not a cricket fan but I
think Yuvraj Singh would
make for a good Bollywood
star," asserts trade analyst
Komal Nahta. "He has a great
fan following, good looks and
he's in his top form," he adds.
Who's her man?
Courageous JournalismApril 07, 2011 16
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