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Toronto township flies flags at half-mast to honour survivors of anti-Sikh riots in India
That announcement from Brampton raised the temperature as India’s consulate in Toronto started its annual consular camps to provide life certificates to seniors in their neighbourhood
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Toronto: A township in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) has announced that it lowered flags beginning on Sunday to mark the start of what it called “Sikh Genocide Awareness Week”.
“We remember those who lost their lives in the 1984 Sikh Genocide, honour survivors and recognise the lasting impact on Sikh communities,” the City of Brampton said in a post on social media.
That alluded to the anti-Sikh riots that took place in Delhi and other parts of India in 1984 after the assassination of then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi by her bodyguards on October 31 that year.
That announcement from Brampton raised the temperature as India’s Consulate in Toronto started its annual consular camps to provide life certificates to seniors in their neighbourhood on Sunday. The first such camps of this year were held at the Hindu Heritage Centre and the Toronto Kali Bari, both in the town of Mississauga, also in the GTA.
Among those welcoming the Brampton announcement was Inderjeet Singh Gosal, the Canada coordinator for the so-called Khalistan referendum organised by the secessionist group Sikhs for Justice (SFJ). In a response on X, he said, “Thank you Brampton for recognising the 1984 Sikh Genocide. The truth always prevails.”
Gosal was among those charged for the violent invasion by pro-Khalistan radicals of the Hindu Sabha Mandir in Brampton on November 3, 2024. At the time, they were protesting the presence of Indian officials at the temple conducting a consular camp.
After not figuring on the list of venues for the camps last year, the Hindu Sabha Mandir is scheduled to host one this month.
The camps on Sunday also saw the demonstrations from pro-Khalistan elements outside the perimeter of the GTA temples. Local law enforcement was on alert particularly as India’s Consul General in Toronto Mahaveer Singhvi attended the Mississauga camps. No disruption was reported from either venue.
