THE City of Brampton officially opened Komagata Maru Park at 10705 Bramalea Road on Saturday (June 22). Brampton Mayor Patrick Brown, Regional Councillor Gurpreet Dhillon and City Councillor Harkirat Singh were among those present.

Raj Toor, Vice President and spokesperson for the Descendants of the Komagata Maru Society, who was especially invited, told The VOICE later: “I would like to say thank you to the Respected Mayor and Councillors Of Brampton for having the park name based on the Komagata Maru memory of the Komagata Maru passengers. It’s a great tribute to those passengers who suffered a lot during the tragedy. Their sacrifice and struggle is recognized by the City Of Brampton Council. Descendants of the Komagata Maru families and the South Asian community are happy. … It’s a Canadian history.”

He added: “We can’t undo the past. We can move forward and leave a legacy for the future generations by educating them about the past. Places like this park will educate the entire community and make us all richer in awareness of how special a place Canada is to have so many different ethnic communities living together. And with this knowledge we can build a better world free from racism.”

The program wrapped up with a tree planting ceremony.