Randeep Sarai

[Allegations Against Government of India, September 19th, 2023]

Madam Chair, I am listening to the House leader of the opposition, and what he has just said is that he is asking for evidence that is to go before courts for people who have not even been charged yet to be disclosed in public, so that everyone may know, and then those who are not even charged yet could possibly run away, go away and hide their deeds.

I think I have a lot of respect for the member. He has been a Speaker here. He understands the rule of law and order and knows, I hope, the basic fundamental principles of law and order and evidence in court proceedings that one cannot do that. It would be very irresponsible for a Prime Minister of any party to ever get up and give evidence in this chamber.

I think the duty in this chamber was to give reassurance, so I ask the hon. opposition House leader to clarify why he would want evidence of an ongoing investigation to be given out in public.

[Committees of the House, June 19th, 2023]

Madam Speaker, I have the honour to present, in both official languages, the 14th report of the Standing Committee on Justice, Human Rights, Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness in relation to Bill C-295, an ct to amend the Criminal Code, neglect of vulnerable adults.

The committee has studied the bill and has decided to report the bill back to the House with amendments.

[Young Volunteers, June 19th, 2023]

Mr. Speaker, today it is my honour to highlight the work of 25 young individuals who have dedicated their lives to progressing Canada through their volunteer work. The Surrey Board of Trade's 25 under 25 have worked tirelessly to grow their communities and provide service to the world around them. Furthermore, these individuals go above and beyond to serve the citizens of Canada, especially within Surrey and in communities throughout the Lower Mainland. They have exceeded expectations by displaying their outstanding commitment and strengthening our neighbourhoods. These truly are our brightest members.

One young man in particular I would like to give a shout-out to is Zora Heer. Zora is an exceptional youth member, and he has demonstrated his perseverance and goodwill through his work with the Surrey youth council. He is a talented leader in Surrey, and he continues to provide his service out of passion. Zora and the 24 other brilliant young minds are determined to uplift Canadians in their respective communities.

[Committees of the House, June 7th, 2023]

Madam Speaker, I have the honour to present, in both official languages, the 13th report of the Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights, entitled “Reforming Canada’s Extradition System”.

Pursuant to Standing Order 109, the committee requests that the government table a comprehensive response to this report.

[Committees of the House, June 5th, 2023]

Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present, in both official languages, the following two reports of the Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights. The first is the 11th report, in relation to Bill C-41, an act to amend the Criminal Code and to make consequential amendments to other acts. The committee has studied the bill and has decided to report the bill back to the House with amendments.

The second is the 12th report, in relation to the motion adopted on Wednesday, May 31, regarding the Taliban regime and human rights.

[Attack on Amritsar Temple, June 5th, 2023]

Mr. Speaker, for many, the sacred place of worship is Jerusalem, Mecca or Varanasi. For the Sikh community, that place is the Harmandir Sahib, globally known as the Golden Temple.

However, in June 1984, the most sacred place of worship for Sikhs was stormed in an orchestrated military operation. In this gruesome attack, thousands were killed, many at point-blank range, and the sarovar turned red with blood. The Akal Takht was blasted. The Sikh Reference Library, containing thousands of manuscripts, paintings and scriptures, was torched to the ground. Forty other gurdwaras around the country were also attacked, and, 39 years later, Sikhs around the world still remember this tragic day.

The Sikh community will forever send its prayers to the victims of this massacre, while also praying that such a dreadful attack on a place of worship never happens again. We shall never forget 1984.

[Public Safety, May 11th, 2023]

Mr. Speaker, gun violence and violent crime have prevented Canadians in B.C. from feeling safe in their communities.

Since 2015, our government has prioritized prevention, intervention and enforcement as ways to keep guns off the street and give resources to our neighbourhoods. Could the Minister of Public Safety tell the House what the Government of Canada is doing to eliminate violent crime in British Columbia?

[Sikh Heritage Month, April 24th, 2023]

[Member spoke in Punjabi]

[English]

Mr. Speaker, today, I want to commemorate two extraordinary events.

Dasmesh Darbar Gurdwara hosted the world's largest Sikh nagar kirtan parade in Canada's fastest growing city of Surrey. There were 700,000 who people gathered from all across the country and abroad to celebrate the birth of the Khalsa. For miles, all one could see was a sea of chunnis, turbans, floats, flags and lots and lots of food.

I want to give a big thanks to all the sevadars, the volunteers and the sponsors, who made one of Canada's greatest events happen this weekend.

Then today, the Liberal Sikh caucus and the Ottawa Sikh Society hosted a three-day Akhand Path celebration of Vaisakhi, Khalsa Day and Sikh Heritage Month. This is the only such event continuously done in any Parliament in the world and something of which all Canadians should be proud.

A special thanks goes out to all the Hill staff and volunteers, and especially the Khalsa Aid volunteers who came out and made this an amazing Sikh Heritage Month.

[The Budget, April 17th, 2023]

Madam Speaker, we have a national housing strategy with $86 billion over 10 years committed to it, which is not a small feat. These are additions to the strategy to expand it. We began by helping those who are homeless and those who need an extra hand. The residential construction financing initiative helps exactly those people in non-market housing to get more affordable housing. There has been $26 billion, if not more, injected into that, with $10 billion in the last fall economic statement. We are working in all facets of it.

The first home savings account is one tool, but not an exclusive one, in the tool chest. We will look at other ways to modernize it and perfect it so that it helps all families.

[The Budget, April 17th, 2023]

Madam Speaker, it is a good question, but I think Canada's road to recovery was a big challenge after the Harper government. There were a lot of things that needed to be done in Canada. I think we had to make a commitment to the Canada child benefit, as I had seen, first-hand, cheques being given to millionaires' families and the taxing of those who were much in need. As well, we needed $10-a-day child care to give women, particularly, a greater opportunity to participate in the labour force, from which we are now seeing results. We also needed to work on health care in general. I think the timing was right for a dental care plan, and I want to thank my colleagues from the NDP for supporting it. However, it is a joint initiative, and I am glad that, when Parliament works together, we can solve a lot of things and will continue to do so in the near future.