Surrey mayor: 'I've had enough of this hornet's nest called Vaisakhi'
Fed up with organizers, city may make big changes for future parades
By Ted Colley, Surrey Now
April 20, 2010
A Surrey Sikh temple could find itself excluded from organizing future Vaisakhi parades after its members included a float bearing images of Sikh terrorists in Saturday's perambulation.
"Enough is enough," Surrey Mayor Dianne Watts said Monday.
"We've tried to work with that organizing committee for the last few years to keep this kind of thing out of the celebration and here we go again."
A committee made up of members of the Dasmesh Darbar temple, 12885 85th Ave., has traditionally organized the Surrey parade. They support the movement for an independent Sikh state carved out of India and view the men in the images as martyrs to that cause. Most of the men, however, are viewed by Canadian authorities as terrorists or as being connected to terrorist organizations.
The images include those of two Sikhs who assassinated Indian prime minister Indira Gandhi and that of Talwinder Singh Parmar, suspected mastermind of the Air India bombings. Parmar was never tried for the bombings as he was killed by Indian police before the case went to trial.
Watts said having the images in the Vaisakhi parade is unacceptable and her patience with the Dasmesh Darbar committee is exhausted.
The situation was made worse when a member of the Dasmesh Darbar committee went on Sher-E-Punjab radio last Thursday and made what many believe were veiled threats against two B.C. politicians.
Inderjit Singh Bains appeared on a radio talk show two days before the parade saying Surrey MLA Dave Hayer and Vancouver MP Ujjal Dosanjh where not welcome at the Surrey festival, adding the two would be "responsible for their own safety and security" if they attended. Both men are moderate Sikhs who oppose violence.
"We've been working with those organizers for an entire year," Watts said. "They gave us assurances that float would not go in. Right the day before, those comments were made and then, on the day of the parade, that float goes in."
Bains' comments drew a demand for an apology from federal Liberal leader Michael Ignatieff and led B.C. Premier Gordon Campbell to boycott the Surrey event.
Hayer, whose father was murdered for his opposition to Sikh terrorism, said Watts and city council have to end the politicization of Vaisakhi in Surrey.
"The mayor of Surrey has to do something. The people were really upset these people were allowed to go ahead with this kind of thing," Hayer told the Now.
"They must find a way to avoid this embarrassment for Surrey and the people here."
Watts agreed.
"He has a point. We have to look at a different format because I'm not going to go through this year after year. We're going to be looking at all our options for Vaisakhi."
Asked if the city might take over the festival and run it as an official city event, Watts said that's one option that will be considered. What about taking the event away from Dasmesh Darbar and letting another Sikh temple organize it?
"That's another option as well. We're going to review all of our options," Watts said.
Bains could not be reached for comment before press time and requests for an interview with a spokesman from Dasmesh Darbar went unanswered.
SADH SANGAT THIS IS ALL SHARAAT OF UJJAL DOUSANJH/DAVE HAYER/BALRAJ DEOL... GIVING REVENGE TO DASMESH DARBAR AND SANGAT OF SURREY..