#1. GET READY FOR MORE EMBARRASSING AIR INDIA REVELATIONS
Even as the RCMP is still targeting some Air India bombing suspects - apparently to make up for their failure to get Ripudaman Singh Malik and Ajaib Singh Bagri convicted - the Air India commission headed by former Supreme Court of Canada Justice John Major is ready to ask the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) some tough questions about tape erasures.
The commission will also look into some controversial evidence regarding the prime Air India bombing suspect Talwinder Singh Parmar who was quite evidently tortured and interrogated by Indian police when they nabbed him in Punjab before they killed him and claimed that he was shot in an encounter - the usual practice by the corrupt Indian police.
The Globe and Mail - whose coverage has been balanced in the Air India bombing matters - reported this week that lead commission counsel Mark Frieman said that the commission starting Monday would focus mostly on issues and events that followed the June 23,1985 bombing.
Of course, the commission will also looking into the Tehelka (www.tehelka.com) report that we carried in our August 4 issue:
The Tehelka report said that retired Punjab Police Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Harmail Singh Chandi, who reportedly arrested Parmar in the Jammu region of the northern Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir in September, 1992, did not destroy Parmar's confession record although he was instructed to do that. (But since Parmar was tortured, his confession should be treated gingerly.)
In the confession, Parmar named Lakhbir Singh Brar "Rode", nephew of Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale and head of the banned International Sikh Youth Federation, as the mastermind of the bombing. Rode, who is now believed to be in Lahore, Pakistan.
Tehelka reported that Chandi produced all the evidence - including audio-tapes - before the RCMP and the John Major inquiry commission.
According to the Tehlka report by Vikram Jit Singh, Parmar's confession states:
"Around May 1985, a functionary of the International Sikh Youth Federation came to me and introduced himself as Lakhbir Singh and asked me for help in conducting some violent activities to express the resentment of the Sikhs. I told him to come after a few days so that I could arrange for dynamite and battery etc. He told me that he would first like to see a trial of the blast ... After about four days, Lakhbir Singh and another youth, Inderjit Singh Reyat, both came to me. We went into the jungle (of British Columbia). There we joined a dynamite stick with a battery and triggered off a blast. Lakhbir and Inderjit, even at that time, had in their minds a plan to blast an aeroplane. I was not too keen on this plan but agreed to arrange for the dynamite sticks. Inderjit wanted to use for this purpose a transistor fitted with a battery ...That very day, they took dynamite sticks from me and left.
"Then Lakhbir Singh, Inderjit Singh and their accomplice, Manjit Singh, made a plan to plant bombs in an Air India (AI) plane leaving from Toronto via London for Delhi and another flight that was to leave Tokyo for Bangkok. Lakhbir Singh got the seat booking done from Vancouver to Tokyo and then onwards to Bangkok, while Manjit Singh got it done from Vancouver to Toronto and then from Toronto to Delhi. Inderjit prepared the bags for the flights, which were loaded with dynamite bombs fitted with a battery and transistor. They decided that the suitcases will be booked but they themselves will not travel by the same flights although they will take the boarding passes. After preparing these bombs, the plan was ready for execution by June 21 or 22, 1985. However, the bomb to be kept in the flight from Tokyo to Delhi via Bangkok exploded at the Narita airport on the conveyor belt. The second suitcase that was loaded on the Toronto-Delhi air flight exploded in the air."
According to the Tehelka report, Punjab Human Rights Organization (PHRO) principal investigator Sarabjit Singh said the PHRO's probe has shown that Parmar was killed to hide the name of Lakhbir, who was an Indian agent. He claimed that a plot was hatched to discredit the Sikh movement and that the Punjab Police got orders to eliminate Parmar because he knew too much about the main perpetrators.
Tehelka pointed out that although Lakhbir is accused in many acts of terrorism, he is wanted by the Indian government in only a minor case registered in Moga, Punjab.
Interestingly, Tehelka reported that when the police officer - Satish K. Kumar, who was a Senior Superintendent of Police at the time and is now an Inspector General of Police - who reportedly killed Parmar in an encounter, was asked about the charge that Parmar was murdered by the police, he shot back: "It was a clean encounter. The RCMP is bringing this up because they botched their investigations and failed to get convictions."
#2. PROMINENT ONTARIO LAWYER T. SHER SINGH DISBARRED
T. Sher Singh, a prominent lawyer and activist who also wrote articles for the Toronto Star, may lose his Order of Canada that he received in 2002 for his public service record following his disbarment for professional misconduct by the Law Society of Upper Canada. A spokesperson for Governor General Michaelle Jean told the Toronto Star that the advisory council would review the matter in the fall.
Singh, a lawyer from Guelph, was disbarred when his former clients accused him of failing to serve them, mishandling trust funds, improperly taking $2,000 from a client and practicing law in spite of being suspended by the law society in November, 2005.
One of the clients, Cathleen Adams, told the law society committee that she and her husband each paid Singh $1,500 to mediate their separation issues, but he failed to come up with a formal separation agreement and ignored their calls.
Another client, Charu Shankar, said she hired Singh to draw up a marital separation agreement because he was a respected member of the community and had received the Order of Canada. She told the committee that although Singh took $3,000 from her as a retainer, he did nothing for her except to send an introductory letter to her husband from whom she needed financial support while she hunted for a job. Singh did not respond to most of her phone messages and emails and neither returned her money nor provided an account to her.
Although Singh told the Toronto Star that he thought that the complaints against him had been resolved more than a year ago when he wrote to the law society that he was resigning his membership, disciplinary panel members said that they were told that because the disciplinary process was already going on, he was not eligible to resign. The panel received documents showing that the law society had sent letters to Singh at his law office and a post office box for over a year to try and obtain his response to these allegations.
The panel will give its written reasons for its decision within 30 days.
#3. KASH HEED: ESTABLISHING A CULTURE OF SELF-IMROVEMENT
At his swearing-in ceremony on Wednesday, West Vancouver Police Chief Constable Kash Heed underscored the concept of personal responsibility and self-initiated progress, and the building of a learning organization that breeds a culture of self-improvement.
Heed reiterated his goal to make West Vancouver the safest city in Canada.
Here is part of his address:
The first thing that I want to accomplish within the confines of the West Vancouver Police Department will be the development of a culture of engaged leadership.
There are a number of factors that have led to varying degrees of performance - increased expectations thrust upon individuals without the proper experiences; a lack of clearly defined structures and processes for internal training and improvement; the absence of benchmarks to gauge personal performance.
I am intent on strongly promoting the concept of personal responsibility and self-initiated progress into the daily operations of every member of this force, but in order for this to be successful, some crucial changes need to occur to lay the foundation for change.
We must build a learning organization that breeds a culture of self-improvement. The opportunity for advancement cannot be applied to one's rank - it must also incorporate the ability for everyone to enhance their understanding of law enforcement, and improve upon their skills.
This will naturally lead to great trust and empowerment being put in the hands of officers to achieve greater accountability, which will in turn create a more complete and capable departmental roster. This will be the basis of giving officers the opportunity to develop their own work plans, and be able to determine success or failure by the standards they have set for themselves.
Finally, these first two steps must be accompanied by a willingness to incorporate new ideas, strategies and techniques offered from every rank in order to create a proactive and involved police force. I want my officers to know that their contributions will not fall on deaf ears, and that all experiences will be listened to and valued.
My hope is that these objectives will serve as the building blocks towards encouraging personal growth, professional development, and above all, improved morale within the West Vancouver Police Department.
… I am determined and ready to not only decrease crime levels within West Vancouver, but also mitigate the fear of crime that exists with the residents of this community.
Reducing crime with quantifiable targets, and measurable progress will be accomplished by implementing the COMPSTAT system.
COMPSTAT is a multi-layered dynamic approach to crime reduction, quality of life improvement and resource management.
COMPSTAT produces an ever-evolving crime map to identify potential problems before they occur.
COMPSTAT incorporates weekly reporting from the leadership of a police department to continually provide information and intelligence on what is occurring across the community.
The overarching approach that COMPSTAT advocates is one that is proactive and fundamentally founded on effective communications and resource management.
- RATTAN MALL
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