Canada Votes to Stop Deportation of Indian Students, India Condemns “Celebration” of Indira Gandhi Assassination

Manas Dasgupta

NEW DELHI, June 8: Even as the Canadian Parliamentary Committee has asked the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) to stop deportation of fraud victim some 700 odd Indian students, India on Thursday condemned the “celebration” of Indian Gandhi assassination by some Khalistani elements in Brampton city in Canada.

External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar on condemned the reports of late Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi’s assassination celebration in Brampton city. He said the bigger issue involved was Canada has provided space continuously to extremist forces for vote bank politics. “It’s not good for the India-Canada relationship and it’s not good for Canada,” he added.

Canadian High Commissioner in India Cameron MacKay also condemned the incident saying there was no place in Canada for hate or for the glorification of violence.  He said he was “appalled” by reports of an event in Canada that celebrated the killing of Indira Gandhi. “I categorically condemn these activities,” he said, in a tweet.

A video on social media shows a parade float in Brampton, allegedly organised by Khalistani supporters ahead of the anniversary of Operation Blue Star. It showcases a tableau in Canada, showcasing the assassination of former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. In the video, the statue of Indira Gandhi can be seen drenched in blood. The then Congress government had launched Operation Blue Star between June 1-6, 1984, to flush out Khalistani terrorists by the Indian army from the Golden Temple, Amritsar. Mrs Gandhi was assassinated four months later for ordering Operation Blue Star.

India warned Canada against giving space to separatists and extremists’ elements, saying it was not good for the bilateral ties. Jaishankar said he has a similar message to the United Kingdom and Australia against allowing pro-Khalistani elements to operate from their territories.

Meanwhile, the Canadian parliamentary committee has voted unanimously to urge the border services agency to stop the deportation of nearly 700 Indian students who were duped by unscrupulous education consultants in India to enter the country with “fraudulent college admission letters.”

The Indian students, mostly from Punjab, face deportation from Canada after the authorities here found their “admission offer letters” to educational institutions fake. The matter came to light in March when these students applied for permanent residency in Canada.

In a symbolic move, the all-party immigration committee voted unanimously on Wednesday to call on the CBSA to waive the inadmissibility of the affected students, The Toronto Star newspaper reported. The committee also asked the CBSA to provide the students, as many as 700 from India, with an alternative pathway to permanent residence on humanitarian grounds or through a “regularisation” programme, the report said.

Calling the students victims of fraud, Jenny Kwan, a lawmaker who tabled the motion said, “So as a first step, this is absolutely essential and necessary. The students are victims of fraud and should not be penalised.” “These students, I’ve met with many of them, now are just in such a terrible state. They’ve lost money, and they are stuck in a terrible situation. And some of them have deportation orders. Others have pending meetings with CBSA,” the newspaper quoted Kwan as saying.

“We need to have empathy for those students, and we should not exploit the situation and play politics on this issue of those innocent students,” Liberal MP Shafqat Ali said. The MP for Brampton Centre, where many affected students now reside, added that the students have “gone through and are going through a lot.”

Taking to Twitter on Wednesday, Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Sean Fraser said, “We are actively pursuing a solution for international students who are facing uncertainty due to having been admitted to Canada with fraudulent college admission letters.” “Those who have taken advantage of people genuinely hoping to study here will face consequences for their actions,” he said in a separate tweet, adding that innocent victims would be given every opportunity to have their cases considered fairly.

Jaishankar said India has taken up the issue with Canadian authorities. “If there were people, who misled them (the students), the culpable parties should be acted upon. It is unfair to punish a student who undertook education in good faith,” he said in New Delhi.

Jaishankar said Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has also made a statement in the House of Commons on the issue. “We are in touch with Canada on the issue,” he said. Trudeau, responding to a question by Indian-origin MP Jagmeet Singh on the fate of the Indian students, said, “We are deeply aware of cases of international students facing removal orders over fraudulent college acceptance letters.” “To be clear, our focus is on identifying the culprits, not penalising the victims. Victims of fraud will have an opportunity to demonstrate their situations and present evidence to support their cases,” he said.

“We recognise the immense contributions international students bring to our country and we remain committed to supporting victims of fraud as we evaluate each case,” the Canadian prime minister said.

The parliamentary committee also passed a motion to issue a news release to condemn the actions of the fraudulent “ghost consultants” and also voted to undertake a study over two meetings into the targeted exploitation scheme faced by the Punjabi international students. The committee has also decided to ask Fraser, Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino and their staff to appear before the committee to provide a briefing on the situation, the report said.

Several Congress leaders have expressed pain over the social media posts on Brampton “celebration” and questioned why Prime Minister Narendra Modi has not spoken to his counterpart and why the Canadian envoy not summoned to lodge a strong protest over the issue.

Senior Congress leader and former Union minister Milind Deora shared the purported video on Twitter and said,” as an Indian, I’m appalled by the 5 km-long parade which took place in the city of Brampton, Canada, depicting the assassination of Indira Gandhi,” he tweeted. “It’s not about taking sides, it’s about respect for a nation’s history and the pain caused by its Prime Minister’s assassination,” Deora said.

The Congress leader asserted that this extremism deserves universal condemnation and a united response. Tagging Mr Deora’s tweet, Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said, “I entirely agree! This is despicable and Dr S Jaishankar should take it up strongly with the Canadian authorities.”

Responding to Deora’s tweet, senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor said, “You are completely right…There should be no politics in condemning this despicable act across party lines.” Congress spokesperson Supriya Shrinate said an Indian prime minister was assassinated by separatist forces and her assassination has been glorified by pro-Khalistan extremists in Canada.

“And all that our government has done is make this one general comment — without even naming Smt Indira Gandhi. Our national interests and security must be above any political concerns. India must take this up officially with the Canadian government,” Ms Shrinate tweeted.