The failed paralyzed refugee claimant Laiber Singh — who spent more than a year in sanctuary in an Abbotsford Sikh temple — has finally left for India.
He presented himself before the Canada Border Services Agency at the Vancouver International Airport on Monday night.
There were emotional moments as some of his tearful supporters hugged him before he boarded the plane.
Only about 50 people showed up to see him off. This was in sharp contrast to the rally that was held by nearly 2,000 of his supporters at the same airport last December. The participants of that rally did not let him leave when he was brought to the airport for deportation.
Frustrated by the Canadian government’s reluctance to allow him to stay here on compassionate grounds, Singh told his lawyer that he wanted to return to his village in Punjab.
Singh entered Canada in 2003 as a political refugee. However, his claim was rejected and he was ordered deported. A stroke left him paralyzed in 2006 and landed him in a long-term care facility in Vancouver.
To avoid deportation, he took sanctuary at the Gurdwara Kalgidhar Durbar in Abbotsford with the help of friends.
Shockingly, the Canadian government decided to deport him on Dec. 10 — International Human Rights Day — last year after reviewing his case following protests and petitioning.
Following the airport rally, Singh was sent to a different Sikh temple. However, he came back to the same temple in Abbotsford after two other temples refused him sanctuary, even after keeping him for several days.
His sudden decision to return to Punjab reflects on the adamancy of the Canadian government and the opportunism of his supporters. He won’t get good medical treatment in India as his poor family and the village environment are not equipped to meet his long-term medical needs.
Immediately after the airport rally, the blame game began among the supporters of Laiber Singh, some of whom tried to buy peace with the government and backed off.
In the recent federal election the issue was not raised and rather helped the ruling Conservative Party.
If Singh were a healthy person, he would have melted into the crowd of thousands of illegal aliens who are helping the black economy of Canada.
His return shames Canada, a country that boasts it is a champion of human rights.
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