What was the Komagata Maru incident?
In May 1914, a group of 376 passengers – 340 Sikhs, 12 Hindus, and 24 Muslims, organized specifically to test Canadas colour bar of exclusionary immigration policies, sailed from the Orient for Vancouver on the freighter Komagata Maru. The ship, chartered for the voyage, had been specially fitted out to accommodate passengers instead of her usual coal cargoes. Arriving in English Bay on May 23, 1914, Komagata Maru and her passengers were caught in a tug-of-war between the vessels organizers and the Canadian government, who refused to let them land. We are British citizens and we consider we have a right to visit any part of the Empire, said organizer Gurdit Singh. We are determined to make this a test case and if we are refused entrance into your country, the matter will not end here. While hired immigration boats with armed guards including Sea Lion – circled Komagata Maru, battles in the courts and the pages of the newspapers played out for more than two months. In the early morning
