COMMENT | The 1914 Komagata Maru incident is considered by historians as “one of the most shameful tragedies in Canadian race relations” and “probably the most dramatic occurrence in the history of Canadian immigration”, which “presented a messy tangle of local, national and international interests.”

It is a dramatic transnational saga of imperial politics, global white supremacy agenda, the rights of British subjects and the valiant spirit of Komagata Maru’s Punjabi passengers – 90 percent of whom were Sikhs – who were denied entry into Canada.

This transnational incident revolves around the turning away of 352 out of 376 Punjabi passengers aboard a Japanese-owned steamship, Komagata Maru, by the Canadian government - primarily due to racial discrimination and fear of economic competition.

The ship sailed into Vancouver’s harbour on May 23, 1914, and was not allowed to dock, virtually becoming a floating detention camp. It was eventually forced to sail out on July 23, 1914, by a Canadian cruiser.

Upon returning to Budge Budge, near Kolkata, India, on...