POLICE SEEKING PUBLIC ASSISTANCE IN THE MANJIT PANGHALI CASE

Delta: The Delta Police Department is requesting public assistance in relation to the on going Manjit Panghali homicide investigation. Police require assistance in identifying and locating a witness. This person was captured on video at a premise (service station) in Surrey the evening Manjit Panghali was last seen, October 18 2006. Police wish to speak to this person as he may have made observations or have information pertaining to this ongoing homicide investigation. Anyone who may know this person, or if you are this person, you are asked to contact the Delta Police Department at 604-946-4411.

Background:

At 0920 hrs on October 23, 2006 the Delta Police responded to a report of a found body just off of the Delta Port Way in South Delta. As a result of this report, from a passerby, the Delta Police Department’s Serious Crime and Forensic Sections as well as the coroner attended the scene. On October 26 2006 the Delta Police confirmed the body found was that of 30 year old Manjit Panghali. Since the discovery of her body, there has been and continues to be an active and indepth homicide investigation underway.

WINNIPEG SIKH COMMUNITY STILL IN SHOCK

Winnipeg: The Sikh community in Winnipeg is reacting with shock to news that police have formally charged three Sikh priests with a variety of sexual assault charges. All three teach at the Gurdwara Nanaksar temple in the St. Vital area. Gurdwara Nanaksar is one of only 17 temples of its kind worldwide - it is affiliated with a specific Sikh sect, Nanaksar Satsang Sabha. Others in the Sikh community worried about the scars the charges may leave on the reputation of the nearly 15,000 Sikhs in Winnipeg. The priests are alleged to have abused a Winnipeg man when he was a boy, over a period of more than five years from June 1990 to January 1996.
"The community is totally stunned by this," said Tej Bains, a retired social worker and activist. "We are still in shock and there's a number of factors. First of all, we just don't talk about sexuality and … we really honour our priests." Bakhshish Singh, 47, Kuljit Singh, 43, and Dalbag Singh, 37, all face charges of sexual assault, sexual exploitation, sexual interference and invitation to sexual touching. Some Sikhs have identified the Gurdwara Nanaksar temple as that of a sect outside mainstream Sikhism in which religious leaders remain celibate.

The temple is one of three of its kind in Canada -- the others are in Brampton, Ont., and Surrey, B.C. Winnipeg's Gurdwara Nanaksar began in 1982. "This is very bad... any allegations of this kind reflect bad on the community as a whole," said Mohinder Singh Dhillon, who worships at Singh Sabha, a mainstream Sikh temple on Sturgeon Rd. The priests were first arrested Dec. 23 and are set to appear in court next month.They have been ordered to stay away from the alleged victim. They've also been told to hand over their passports and not be in the presence of anyone under 18 years without supervision.
Sheldon Pinx, the lawyer representing all three men, said last month that his clients maintain their innocence and deny all charges. Meanwhile, a police spokesperson says there may be more arrests in the case. Winnipeg police said two more priests were arrested last weekend and were released on a promise to appear in court. Sgt. Kelly Dennison added the charges are linked to an alleged kidnapping occurring earlier this month. The Free Press previously reported that on Dec. 14, a man armed with a sword and another man armed with a tire iron allegedly kidnapped two priests from the temple.

The men drove them to a residence in the Waverley area where they allegedly physically assaulted the priests. Jeewan Jyot Kahlon, 24, and Amandeep Singh Chana, 25, both face charges of kidnapping, forcible confinement, assault with a weapon and possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose. At the time, police said a "personal dispute" was behind the incident and the victims knew their attackers.

MJM OWNER'S DAUGHTER'S KIDNAPPING CASE HEARING ON JAN 31

Surrey: MJM Furniture owner Jeet Jaswal's daughter's kidnapping case will be heard on January 31. The concerned community members must attend the hearing to extend support to the family. This will also help other victims come forward, as the Surrey RCMP Major Crime investigators have reason to believe there may be other victims in the community that have not come forward to police. They had supposedly paid the ransom. There is absolutely no shame in letting th police know of the crime.

Background: Twenty two year old girl was kidnapped on January 19, 2007, at approximately 9:10pm. She was held against her will for several hours and the kidnappers asked for a huge sum of money. However, the culprits have been arrested and the girl is safe. Surrey RCMP has charged 26 year old Amandeep Randhawa and 33 year old Gurpreet Hundal for kidnapping, forcible confinement, exortotion and robbery.

MCGUINTY A STAR IN PUNJAB

Amritsar: It was Dalton-mania in Punjab over the weekend as Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty and his entourage were greeted here as something special. On his previous stops in his tour of India – Delhi, Bangalore, Mumbai (Bombay) – McGuinty was received politely but nonchalantly. Indians in those cities have been inundated with foreign dignitaries in recent years and have become rather blasé about it. Gordon Brown, Britain's finance minister and putative future prime minister, and Anibal Cavaco Silva, president of Portugal, were in the same places at the same times as McGuinty and, naturally, drew more attention than a premier (which is not a term the Indians use) from some place called Ontario. But it was an entirely different story in Punjab, which is in the north end of the country and somewhat off the beaten track for foreign visitors.
Why did McGuinty go there?
Punjab is the homeland of the Sikhs, and there are some 250,000 Sikhs living in Ontario, including three MPPs who accompanied McGuinty on his tour: Harinder Takhar, minister of small business, and backbenchers Kuldip Kular and Vic Dhillon. They were all treated like visiting royalty from the time they touched down in Chandigarh (capital of Punjab) on Friday night and were given a police escort into town from the airport. The same evening, McGuinty and friends were the guests of honour at a sort-of state dinner at the Punjab Bhawan, the receiving place for visiting dignitaries. Their host was Amarinder Singh, chief minister (premier) of Punjab and the son of the last maharajah in the area. Key members of his government also attended, as well as local media, who jostled for position to get photos of McGuinty with Singh.
The next morning, McGuinty had breakfast with Bhupinder Singh Hooda, chief minister of the neighbouring state of Haryana. (Punjab and Haryana share Chandigarh as their capital.) Then it was on to deliver a speech to about 200 local businessmen before hopping a bus for a four-hour drive to Jalandhar, the birthplace of many Ontario Sikhs. His hotel was festooned with a sign: "Welcome Mr. Dalton McGuinty, hon'ble premier of Ontario-Canada." The welcome inside was rapturous as about 200 Sikhs – some of them on a visit from Ontario – crowded into a small hotel meeting room to get a glimpse of McGuinty. "I cannot begin to tell you how proud I am to be the very first Ontario premier to visit Punjab," McGuinty said in a brief speech. "We feel very much at home here."
After the speech, members of the audience were lining up to shake McGuinty's hand and be photographed with him. It was not all harmonious. Some of the hand-shakers also bent the premier's ear on issues like the problems Punjabi residents have getting visas to visit Canada and the difficulties that professionals from Punjab have finding work in their fields once they settle in Canada. But overall the atmosphere was boisterously friendly. So it was, too, yesterday morning when McGuinty visited the 400-year-old Golden Temple at Amritsar, the holiest of holy places in the Sikh faith.
What all this had to do with a trade mission to India is a good question.
The business leaders who had been accompanying McGuinty at the earlier stops all abandoned the tour before it reached Punjab. Their absence in Punjab was disdainfully noted by the half-dozen representatives of the Punjabi-Canadian media following McGuinty on his tour. They peppered him with questions about what business was actually being transacted in Punjab, and McGuinty responded with bafflegab. The answer to the question, of course, is that the Punjab leg of the tour was an opportunity for McGuinty to have positive images of himself beamed back to voters in ridings in Brampton and Mississauga, where Ontario's Sikhs are concentrated.

DAUGHTER OF MJM FURNITURE OWNER NOW SAFE, CHARGES LAID AGAINST TWO

Surrey: Twenty two year old duaghter of MJM Furniture's owner was kidnapped on January 19, 2007, at approximately 9:10pm. She was held against her will for several hours and the kidnappers asked for a huge sum of money. However, the culprits have been arrested and the girl is safe. Surrey RCMP has charged 26 year old Amandeep Randhawa and 33 year old Gurpreet Hundal for kidnapping, forcible confinement, exortotion and robbery.
Surrey RCMP Major Crime investigators have reason to believe there may be other victims in the community that have to date, not come forward to police. They are being strongly urged to do so at this time. Police has not released further information. The two accused are to appear in the court tomorow (Jan 23) at 1.30pm.
(Police hasn't released the name of the father or daughter, but I came to know that the rich Surrey businessman is none other than MJM Furniture's owner through some sources.)

THREE INDO CANADIANS TO FACE STIFF SENTENCES

Three men found guilty in the gang-style kidnapping of an Abbotsford man are facing the possibility of stiff sentences in Vancouver Supreme Court. Sarpreet Singh Johal of Surrey, Harjit Singh Deo of New Westminster, and Jasvinder Mangat of Burnaby were found guilty of kidnapping using a firearm, and extortion using a firearm. Mangat was also convicted of assault causing bodily harm, and possession of a weapon for dangerous purpose. All were charged in connection with the May 2, 2005 kidnapping of Abbotsford resident Harjit Toor from his Coquitlam workplace.
Toor – who the kidnappers believed stole 300 pounds of marijuana – was bound, beaten, and held for ransom before being released two days later. The Crown and defence made lengthy submissions to Justice Arne Silverman when the accused first appeared in court for sentencing Jan. 8. The Crown is asking for a sentence of 10 to 14 years given the seriousness of the crime and the degree of the men’s involvement, said prosecutor Michel Huot last week. “Crown’s position is the accused had more or less the same degree of involvement in the kidnapping as Jethinder Raman Narwal and so should receive a similar sentence,” Huot said. Narwal, a Surrey resident, has already been convicted in the case and was sentenced in March to a total of 17 years in jail. The Surrey man was found guilty in the kidnapping of three people – including Toor – in three separate incidents in 2005.
Joe Bellows, Crown counsel for the Narwal trial, told the media after sentencing the prison term is believed to be the longest in B.C. for the offences for which he was convicted. When Justice Sunni Stromberg-Stein handed down Narwal’s sentence, she gave him 22 months credit for 11 months already served, meaning he has more than 14 years in prison remaining. The trial for the roles played by Deo, Johal, and Mangat in the kidnapping started in September 2006 and ended with their conviction Oct. 20. At that time, a fifth man allegedly involved in the kidnapping, Davinder Singh Johal of Vancouver, was acquitted.

HARPER INCLUDES PUNJABIS IN APOLOGY LIST

Such a view, which is certainly not shared by Prime Minsiter Stephen Harper and the party leadership, is no doubt what has impelled him to take what, for him, was an unusual step. Surprisingly, he has joined the Apology Parade, adding a new category, the Punjabis, to the lengthening list of past peoples to whom Canada feels it owes an apology and, presumably, compensation. This already includes the Chinese, Japanese, Ukrainians, Germans, Italians and Sikhs. The Parade is, in fact, an exercise in historical revisionism most uncharacteristic of Harper. It leans heavily on two assumptions. One is that modern Canadians are far more just and inclusive than their forebears.

They therefore want to distance themselves from their ancestors' evil deeds. Always, the accompanying explanatory rationale fails to take into account the dire historical circumstances that usually obtained when this or that dark deed was done. Second, the Apology Parade relies on the easily demonstrated assumption that modern Canadians know very little history, of their own country or anybody else's. It is grounded, that is, on ignorance. But surely one does not cavil over such esoteric objections. Think of those Toronto seats, man! So why not a word or two for the Punjabis?

PRAVASI AWARDS RIGGED, ALLEGE OVERSEAS INDIANS

The curtain is barely down on the Pravasi Bharatiya Diwas — the government's annual jamboree for overseas Indians — and the guests are grumbling about what a poor show it has been. Indian communities in the state of Illinois and the Federation of Indian Associations (FIA), Chicago, say the Pravasi Bharatiya Samman – the awards for overseas Indians who have helped enhance the country's image – were rigged. They have now urged President APJ Kalam to order an investigation into the selection process.

FIA president Babu Patel said he would write to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee about the "humiliation" of the Indian Diaspora at the hands of the government. Speaking to HT, Patel said a proper evaluation would have been possible only after back-up information from the community. He alleged that the government ignored the groundwork done by prominent Indians to get the Indo-US nuclear deal through. The FIA, an umbrella of 25 Indian organisations, has also alleged that Overseas Indian Affairs Minister Vayalar Ravi nominated his friends for the Pravasi awards, including Dr M Anirudhan in the medical category.

But Ravi said he had "nothing to do" with the selection process which was handled by a committee headed by Vice President Bhairon Singh Shekhawat. He, however, confirmed that Anirudhan was a friend of his. "I have known him since 1980 and as an MP, stayed with him in Chicago," Ravi told HT. He said some American Indians had personally canvassed for the awards in violation of the selection process. It is also alleged that recommendations made by the Indian embassy in the US were ignored.

Chicago's Consul General Arun Kumar, it is learnt, had recommended Dr Bharat H Barai and Raghu Nayak for their work on the Indo-US civil nuclear deal. Dr Barai told HT from Chicago that Ravi has "cleverly bypassed the merit selection process and substituted the merit list with names of his own friends". The government is also on the mat for keeping major opposition parties and leaders out of the summit. LM Singhvi, who had conceived the idea of a Pravasi Diwas, and JC Sharma, who put together the first two Pravasi events, were not invited. Singhvi said, "I was not invited.

It is a strange commentary on the politicisation of the event."Conceding the slip-up, Ravi said the invitations were indeed sent but they were sent late: "I was ill for a week and the invitations were delayed." Ravi said he had personally written to BJP's LK Advani to chair one of the sessions.

THOUSANDS ATTEND GURU PREMIERE IN TORONTO

The South Asian community in Toronto was out in full force for the premiere of Bollywood film Guru and to catch a glimpse of stars Abhishek Bachchan and Aishwarya Rai. An estimated 1,200 Hindi cinema fans - some clad in vibrant saris, ghagra cholis (skirt-blouse) and flashy salwar kameezes - were seen outside the historic Elgin Theatre Thursday evening." They're the Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie of the Indian community," an excited Indian teenager was heard saying after seeing Abhishek and Aishwarya, who arrived a little late owing to a flight delay.

"The South Asian community is very important to our city and so is the film industry. Bollywood brings them together," said Mayor David Miller as he walked into the screening, the Canada Post reported.According to the 2001 Canadian census, 917,000 individuals identified themselves as South Asians, accounting for 23 percent of the total population.Bobby Bedi, producer of Guru said he chose Toronto for his premiere because it "by far is one of the most cosmopolitan cities in the world".The film is about the life of a young man who rose from poverty in a small Indian village in the 1950s to defy the odds and become a major textile merchant. "Guru" is loosely based on late business tycoon Dhirubhai Ambani.

GURUDWARA TO MARK BHAI MEWA SINGH'S SACRIFICE

New Westminster: This weekend, Sikhs will celebrate the sacrifice of Bhai Mewa Singh, who was hanged in New Westminster in 1915. The Sikh pioneer assassinated a local police inspector he believed was behind the widespread persecution of Sikhs. The Sikh temple Gurdwara Sahib Sukh Sagar in Queensbrough will host the celebrations on Saturday and Sunday. On Saturday there will be a youth program in English on Singh followed by a movie on the Komagata Maru. On Sunday there will be lectures and a slideshow presentation on a man considered a martyr for Sikhism. Local Sikhs celebrate Bhai Mewa Singh because his sacrifices remind them each year of the struggles Sikhs had to endure to gain equality in Canada.
Leading up to his execution, there were acts of injustice and discrimination against the small population of Sikhs, most located in B.C. Discriminatory acts by the government of the time included the 1907 Election Act, which deprived East Indians from voting in provincial and municipal elections. Other legislation prevented the children and wives of Sikhs from immigrating to Canada to join their fathers and husbands. The most obvious sign of discrimination was the Komagata Maru incident in 1914 when 376 Sikhs, Muslims and Hindu passengers aboard the ship Komagata Maru were denied entry at Vancouver harbour, despite the fact they were British subjects.
They were also physically threatened, denied food, water and supplies and not permitted to take their individual cases before the courts. Two months after they arrived, the ship left Vancouver and returned to Hong Kong. Early Sikhs also had to endure race riots and shootings of their leaders. In 1914, Bhai Mewa Singh shot Inspector William Hopkinson, after the policeman’s testimony led to the acquittal of a man accused of shooting a prominent Sikh leader. In the subsequent trial, Singh told the court he could no longer bear to witness the wrong done to his people.

OVERNIGHT HOMICIDE SHOOTING IN RICHMOND

Richmond: The Integrated Homicide Investigation Team has identified the victim in yesterday's Richmond incident. Kirk Robert Holifield of Ladner is the 35-year-old male. Richmond serious crime unit had called in the Integrated Homicide Investigation Team to investigate the overnight shooting death of a 35 year-old Caucasian male from the Lower Mainland.

At approximately 1230 AM on January 11, 2007 Richmond RCMP were called to the intersection of Shell Road and Westminster Highway after a male was discovered slumped over the wheel of his SUV. Once on scene it became apparent that the male was suffering from several gunshot wounds, he was taken by ambulance to Vancouver General Hospital were he succumbed to his injuries several hours later. At this point investigators do not believe that the incident has any links to the Thursday January 4, 2007 shooting spree in Richmond. Investigators are saying at this point in the probe this incident appears as though it was a targeted attack.

DECEASED FEMALE HAS BEEN IDENTIFIED AS AMRITA SIDHU

Surrey: RCMP has confirmed that the body of a deceased female located on January 07, 2007 at 5:45 PM at Colebrook Road (just east of 152nd street) is that of 15 year-old Amrita Jyoti Sidhu. Amrita left an area hospital on January 05, 2007. She was last seen by hospital staff at 4:30 PM and was reported missing to police a short time later. Her whereabouts between the time of her departure from the hospital and the discovery of her body is unknown. The Surrey RCMP’s Major Crimes Section have conduct of this matter and are continuing their investigation. The cause of death is not being released pending autopsy results. Police are hoping to speak with anyone who may have seen or spoken to Amrita Sidhu between January 05 and January 07.

DELTA MAN BEATEN FOR MISTAKENLY CALLING 911

Delta: A Delta resident, Jaskaran Singh Randhawa, was beaten and put behind bars on Thursday night for mistakenly dialling 911. “I was calling India and forgot to dial the international access number 011, before dialling India code. The call mistakenly went to 911. By the time I got a chance to explain it to the dispatcher that it was by mistake I dialled 911, the cops were in front of my house.” He told Indo-Canadian Online, “I tried to explain it to the police officers that it was all a big mistake, but they just pulled me out of my house and started beating me up. I was then taken to the police station and had to spend my night in jail.

Though the next day, Randhawa did try to make it business as usual, he could not get over the fact that he was mistreated by police officers for committing an innocent mistake. “My knees were aching and my arms were aching. But it was nothing when you compare that with the emotional trauma I went through that night. They made me feel like a criminal.” Randhawa contacted Indo-Canadian radio station RED FM and informed them about the mistreatment. He was featured on The Harjinder Thind Show. Randhawa has hired a lawyer and lodged a complaint against the officers. Charlene Brooks, Delta Police Department spokesperson, said that the department was investigating the incident.

NRIs IN CANADA AND US BOYCOTT PRAVASI BHARATIYA DIVAS

Surrey: About 850 Non-Resident Indians living in Canada and America have boycotted the upcoming Pravasi Bharatiya Divas to be held in New Delhi from January 7-9 this year. According to the Surrey chapter of the NRI Cell, the unfulfilled promise of providing dual citizenship and right to vote to NRIs living in Canada and America forced the Indo-Canadians and Indo-Americans to boycott the event sponsored and organized by the Indian government. Talking to Indo-Canadian online, Vikram Bajwa of NRI Cell Surrey said, "In 2006, Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had promised to present a bill granting dual citizenship and voting rights to People of Indian Origin (PIOs), and nothing has been done so far". He added, "There are a lot of NRIs who still have family and property in India, and unfortunately, any threat to the family and property is never addressed."
“Great Pravasi” Mahatma Gandhi had arrived this week 90 years ago whose memory is honored and celebrate through this historic gathering. Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, who with his wife Kasturba, walked down the ramp of a ship at Apollo Bunder in Mumbai on the 9th of January 1915, returning to a home where he would for all time be remembered, revered and loved as Bapu. It is in celebration of Gandhiji’s arrival in Mumbai that this meeting is organized at this time of the year for the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas.

YEARS OF MOLESTATION BY SIKH PRIESTS ALLEGED

A Winnipeg man whose complaints about sexual misconduct led to the arrest of three Sikh priests last month was allegedly molested for more than five years, between the ages of eight and 14. As first reported in the Sun last week, three priests from the Gurdwara Nanaksar temple in St. Vital were arrested Dec. 23 amid allegations of inappropriate sexual conduct. Police were initially tight-lipped about the details, but cops revealed yesterday all three priests -- men aged 37, 43, and 47 -- are facing charges of sexual assault, invitation to sexual touching, sexual interference and sexual exploitation. The 37- and 43-year-old men are each facing an additional charge of anal intercourse.
None of the allegations have been proven in court. Sheldon Pinx, the lawyer representing all three men, said last week that his clients maintain their innocence and deny all charges. Const. Jacquie Chaput, a police spokeswoman, said yesterday the alleged abuses are said to have taken place between June 1990 and January 1996. Police are only aware of one alleged victim, but Chaput said investigators would speak with additional complainants if any came forward. She also said additional arrests may be pending. Police have previously said a fourth suspect was believed to be in Vancouver.
The charges of sexual assault, sexual interference, invitation to sexual touching and anal intercourse all carry maximum sentences of 10 years in prison upon conviction. Sexual exploitation -- defined as sexual touching or invitation by a person "in a position of trust or authority" -- carries a maximum five-year sentence. The priests have been released from custody on promises to appear in court, which they are scheduled to do next month. Their arrests have sparked shock among the Sikh community in Winnipeg and beyond. Some Sikhs have identified the Gurdwara Nanaksar temple as a member of a sect outside mainstream Sikhism. The temple is one of only 17 in the world affiliated with the Nanaksar Satsang Sabha organization.

NRI VOTING RIGHTS IN NEXT PARLIAMENT

A bill granting voting rights to the NRIs would be introduced in Parliament during the next session, Minister for Overseas Indian Affairs Vayalar Ravi said on Friday while ruling out a similar facility to the People of Indian Origins (PIOs). Addressing a press conference ahead of the 'Pravasi Bharatiya Divas' to be inaugurated by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on January 7, Ravi said the Bill to amend the Representation of People's Act was earlier introduced but was referred to the Standing Committee.
The Committee had suggested a few amendments which would now be incorporated in the new Bill, he said. Amendments to the RP Act would be made to enable enrolment as voters of the Indian passport holders. But under the Indian Constitution anyone holding a passport of any other country cannot be granted voting rights and there is no proposal to amend it either, he said. Referring to the misuse of marriages by some NRIs, the minister said India was likely to join The Hague Convention on Private International Law.

This would enable protection of the interests of Indian girls who are trapped by the unscrupulous expatriates through marriages. The government has already launched a campaign to create awareness among the vulnerable sections so that they do not get exploited. The campaign would be carried upto village level. Over 1500 NRIs are expected to attend the three-day annual meet where Singapore Deputy Prime Minister S Jayakumar would be the Chief Guest.

INDIANS OVERWHELM CHINESE IN THE US

If India is shining at home, the diaspora is dazzling in America. What is more, it has stolen a march over the Chinese. Indians founded more engineering and technology firms in the US over the past decade than any other immigrant group, a new study reveals. Between 1995 and 2005, Indian immigrants founded more companies in these sectors than Chinese, Taiwanese and British immigrants put together. A fourth of all engineering companies founded in the US over the past one decade were started by immigrants. In 2005, these companies had sales revenue of $52 billion and employed 45,000 employees.
As many as 26 per cent of these firms had Indian founders. These findings were revealed on Thursday in a study conducted by Duke University's School of Engineering and University of California at Berkely's School of Information. The findings underline again how skilled foreign workers hold the key to the development of technology and engineering industries in the US. Vivek Wadhwa, executive in residence at Duke University's Pratt School of Engineering and the author of the report, said many of the huge wave of Indian immigrants who arrived in the US after 1980 were knowledge workers.
This is borne out by two things: the fact that Indians obtained the most number of patents - after the Chinese - between 1995 and 2005; and that nearly half of all Indian-founded companies in the US are in the software sector. "These are the people who give the US its competitive advantage," Wadhwa said. "This shows that when Indians are given the environment, in which they can succeed, they can stand head to head with the best of the best, in Silicon Valley and elsewhere."

HUGE TURNOUT EXPECTED FOR DIASPORA CONCLAVE

Around 950 delegates from India and 42 other countries have registered for the three-day Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (PBD) 2007, the annual conclave of the Indian diaspora, to be inaugurated by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh at Vigyan Bhavan Jan 7. Over 160 delegates from India alone have confirmed their participation in the event being organised by the Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs in partnership with the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII)). The event is expected to act as a platform for networking between overseas Indians and their native country. The focus areas in the fifth edition of PBD, which has the theme 'Rooting for the Roots', would be social issues and how Indians abroad can contribute to India's development.

There will be dedicated sessions on education, healthcare, women, youth and investment. Among the prominent overseas Indians coming for this year's event are management guru C.K. Prahalad, who will be a panelist in the plenary session on challenges of India's development in the global context, and Global Organization of People of Indian Origin (GOPIO) chairman Thomas Abraham, who will speak on how to engage PIOs in India's development process. A working session on healthcare in the context of India's development will see Dr. Subramaniam Balasubramaniam, president of the American Association of Physicians of Indian Origin (AAPI), and Dr. Rajeev Venkayya, special assistant on bio-defence to US President George W. Bush, participating.

Malaysia's Works Minister and Malaysian Indian Congress president Samy Vellu, a person of Indian origin, will be the guest of honour in a plenary on 'How to get $1.5 trillion of capital investment into India'. Sam Pitroda, chairman of India's Knowledge Commission, will be the chief guest in a plenary that will look into how India can leverage the knowledge skills of its diaspora. The chief ministers of Bihar, Delhi - the partner state for the event - Haryana and Gujarat will be attending the interactive sessions with states that are being organised with the view to explore partnership and investment opportunities in the states.

This year, Singapore's Deputy Prime Minister S. Jayakumar will be attending the event as the chief guest.Sessions apart, cultural programmes are also being organised in the evening on all three days. This will include an evening on folk dances of India, a dance performance by well-known Malayali cine actress Shobhana, another by Hindi film choreographer Shiamak Davar's troupe and a sarod recital by Ustad Amjad Ali Khan and his sons Amaan and Ayaan Ali Bangash. PBD is the flagship event of the MOIA. It aims to connect the 25 million-strong Indian diaspora spread across 110 countries.

SIKH PRIESTS FACE SEX CHARGES; TEMPLE IN UPROAR

WINNIPEG: Members of a small Sikh temple are dismayed after charges of sexual misconduct were laid by police against three of its priests. "Everybody's shocked... this was the last thing that would have ever popped into my mind," said one member of Gurdwara Nanaksar, located on St. David Road in St. Vital. "There's a massive uproar - sex is not talked about... it's a very taboo topic," he said. Gurdwara Nanaksar is one of only 17 temples of its kind worldwide - it is affiliated with a specific Sikh sect, Nanaksar Satsang Sabha.
Priests at the temple are expected to be celibate, and from as young as age eight lead a monastic life of meditation and prayer, the member said. "(The priests) are raised in the temples - they don't have a choice in whether they are celibate or not," he said. According to the member, the priests in question are believed to still be conducting religious ceremonies at the temple, but in a limited capacity preventing them from having contact with minors. Others in the Sikh community worried about the scars the charges may leave on the reputation of the nearly 15,000 Sikhs in Winnipeg.
"This is very bad... any allegations of this kind reflect bad on the community as a whole," said Mohinder Singh Dhillon, who worships at Singh Sabha, a mainstream Sikh temple on Sturgeon Rd. Describing Winnipeg's small sect, consisting of fewer than 300 members, as "not for the general public, but run for certain people," Singh Dhillon referred to the priests as "temporary - they are recalled (to Punjab) every three or four years." Paramajit Gill said it's the first kind of incident he's heard involving members of his community, and hoped for a full inquiry into the allegations. "The Sikh people will not tolerate any incidents like this in our religion," he said.

Winnipeg police said the priests were arrested last weekend and were released on a promise to appear in court. Sgt. Kelly Dennison added the charges are linked to an alleged kidnapping occurring earlier this month. The Free Press previously reported that on Dec. 14, a man armed with a sword and another man armed with a tire iron allegedly kidnapped two priests from the temple. The men drove them to a residence in the Waverley area where they allegedly physically assaulted the priests. Jeewan Jyot Kahlon, 24, and Amandeep Singh Chana, 25, both face charges of kidnapping, forcible confinement, assault with a weapon and possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose.
At the time, police said a "personal dispute" was behind the incident and the victims knew their attackers. "It's one big sordid soap opera," Dennison said Saturday, noting police would not elaborate on the case. "This is historical. It goes back over time." The temple is one of three of its kind in Canada -- the others are in Brampton, Ont., and Surrey, B.C. Winnipeg's Gurdwara Nanaksar began in 1982.

PICS' CHARAN GILL GETS GLOBAL AWARD

The executive director of PICS, Charan Gill, is one of the four people worldwide who will receive a community service award from Global Organization of People of Indian Origin (GOPIO) this week. GOPIO is holding its own convention in New Delhi to coincide with the much bigger Indian government sponsored annual Pravasi Bharatiya Divas. The Pravasi Bharatiya Divas, to be held on January 7-9, is an event for people of Indian origin to get together once a year, exchange ideas, interact and do business. This year GOPIO decided to hold its convention a couple of days before the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas. The highlight of the GOPIO meeting will be the reception and grand awards banquet at the Ashoka Hotel on the evening of January 5th and Minister of Overseas Indian Affair Vayalar Ravi will be the chief guest. He will present the community service awards to Charan Gill, George Abrahams of Singapore, Nevin P Megchiani of Bahrain and Wahed Saleh of Netherlands.