MEA Denies Atwal Visited India With The Help Of Rogue Officials
Jaspal Atwal a former Khalistani terrorist managed to get a visa to India. Making matters worse Atwal was photographed with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau at an event in Mumbai. This sparked a huge controversy in India. The biggest question is how did Atwal enter the country after he was added to the blacklist of Indian origin terrorists.
Atwal who was part of the Khalistan terror group has been involved in more than one criminal case. In 1985, Atwal was charged for attacking former British Columbia Premier and Liberal MP Ujjal Dosanjh. The Liberal MP was beaten up by Atwal and rushed to a hospital with a broken skull. But the former Sikh separatist member was acquitted of all the charges.
This was the first time Atwal managed to escape from justice and did so again. In 1986, Atwal along with three accomplices attempted to assassinate Punjab Minister Malkiat Singh Sidhu in Canada. Atwal was charged and received a sentence of 20 years. But yet again Atwal got parole and served less than half his sentence.
Years later in 2010, Atwal got entangled on the wrong side of the law in Canada again. This time he was involved in an automobile fraud. Atwal worked as a car salesman for a company that falsely reported stolen cars just to resell them.
Jaspal has managed to get inside the Canadian politics circle over the years. He was first found attending a Budget session of the British Columbia Legislative in 2012. Then in 2013 before Trudeau assumed office he was photographed in a picture with Jaspal. Again in May 2015, Jaspal was invited to a Liberal Party event. But this time the one behind Jaspal’s invitation was forced to resign.
Now the former terrorist was in India sparking outrage in the Country. The Home Ministry investigated the matter and found Jaspal Atwal was removed from the blacklist of Sikh terrorists. According to India it is yet to be ascertained how and when this development took place. But on the other end of the world, a source from the Canadian Government stated Jaspal was removed from the list by the Indian authorities. The Indian Government believes there was some underhand work but the Canadian source assured this was not a mistake.
Before the issue of Jaspal, the media blew up about how PM Trudeau was snubbed by India. Surprisingly PM Modi who takes foreign leaders’ visit seriously had nothing to do with Trudeau’s trip. Modi did not greet him at the airport nor did he accompany him to the Amarnath Temple.
Many have termed the Canadian PM a Khalistani terrorist sympathizer. This came after Trudeau attended a Sikh event in Toronto in May 2017. The event featured Khalistan flags and posters of the terror group’s late leader Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale.
This week Trudeau traveled to Punjab where he met Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh. The Punjab CM initially did not plan to meet the Canadian leader but made a last minute change. During the meeting Singh addressed Trudeau’s connection to the former Khalistan terrorist. Trudeau immediately apologized and said strict action would be taken against those who invited Jaspal.
Jaspal in India is a huge security breach and must be taken seriously. This raises a number of questions beginning with how Jaspal got off the blacklist. Canadian MP Randeep Sarai admitted to being the one who invited Jaspal Atwal to Trudeau’s event. Sarai apologized and said he should have exercised better judgment and will take full responsibility.
Atwal removed from the blacklist is only half the story of how he managed to travel to India. The Canadian justice system has a No Fly list for convicted criminals. The Canadian officials were asked if Jaspal was on the No Fly list. But the officials refused to talk about it and said the case against Jaspal was 30 years old.
This story is left with loose ends leaving the country questioning security measures in India. Jaspal may have reformed but he still remains a convicted terrorist. In a world where terrorism is a continuously rising problem, former terrorists need to be kept under an eagle eye.
The Indian Government is left to answer how Jaspal was cleared for a visa to India.
