Dhaliwal participates in Vaisakhi clebration on Parliament Hill

OTTAWA-Today Member of Parliament Sukh Dhaliwal celebrated Vaisakhi, the Birth of Khalsa, on Parliament Hill in a special ceremony featuring prominent MPs from the Liberal Party: the Hon. Stephane Dion, Leader of the Official Opposition, Peter Milliken, the Speaker of the House, the Hon. Ralph Goodale, the House Leader, the Hon. Karen Redman, Whip, the Hon. Ujjal Dosanjh, John Maloney and Anthony Rota. The unique ceremony to recognize this special day of the Sikh Faith has been organized by the Hon. Gurbax Mahli since 1994. Mr. Mahli is the first Sikh Member of Parliament in Canada.

“Today my Liberal colleagues and I celebrated the birth of Khalsa, the most important day in the Sikh Nation’s history, right here in the Parliament of Canada. This event is a testament to the inclusiveness of our elected institutions and to the respect of the Liberal Party for the Sikh faith,” Dhaliwal said.

The Akhand Path ceremony began in the historical Confederation Building with readings of Guru Granth Sahib Ji, the holy scripture, and continued non-stop for 48 hours until this morning. It culminated with a speech from Mr. Dion praising the universal values of the Sikh faith and the achievements of the Sikhs. Mr. Devsharan Singh Hundal, the President of the Ottawa Sikh Society, also spoke about the importance of Vaisakhi. The honourable members were presented with Kirpans, ceremonial swords in the finale.

“It was a privilege to celebrate Vaisakhi in the Parliament of Canada. I congratulate Mr. Mahli and the volunteers for all their work to make this special ceremony happen,” Dhaliwal said.

Sukh Dhaliwal is the Member of Parliament for Newton - North Delta and the Opposition Critic for Competitiveness and the New Economy.

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Photos of the event are attached. Larger copies are available by request to dhalis8@parl.gc.ca. Please credit Miroslaw Grudzinski when reproducing them.

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