s
wn ts Dental Cro
Dental Implan
Ceramic Crowns Bridges es Sem-Clear Brac es ac Br d Spee Invisalign ry General Dentist s tic on od th Or Implants ning Cosmetic White
t
en Braces Treatm Providing Fast
TATION FREE CONSUL
, Dr. R. Sidhu titioner
General Dental Prac
DDS
604 543 5060
y 0th Street, Surre
www.theasianstar.com
#215 - 7110, 12
VOL 25 - ISSUE 45
SATURDAY, DECEMBER 27, 2025
Indian student shot dead near University of Toronto
Judge reduces sex criminal's jail time because of his race
Toronto police identified the victim of a shooting Tuesday near the University of Toronto Scarborough campus (UTSC). In a news release Wednesday, the Toronto Police Service said 20-year-old Shivank Avasthi is the city's 41st homicide victim of the year. Officers were called to the area of Highland Creek Trail and Old Kingston Road for unknown trouble at approximately 3:30 p.m. Tuesday, Toronto police said Wednesday. Upon arrival, Toronto police found a victim with a gunshot wound. Avasthi was pronounced dead at the scene, according to Wednesday's release. Toronto police said the suspect fled the area prior to police arrival. No suspect description has been released.
A former university football player who sexually assaulted two women has been sentenced to just two years in prison because he is black and was feeling intense pressure around the time of the attacks, the judge said. Omogbolahan Jegede, 25, had choked one of the women almost into unconsciousness. “It should be noted that but, for the contents of the Impact of Race and Culture Assessment (IRCA), the pre-sentence report and all the mitigating factors surrounding Omogbolahan (Teddy) Jegede, this sentence would have been much higher,” Justice Frank Hoskins said in his Nova Scotia Supreme Court decision on Wednesday. The women were attacked in residences at St. Francis Xavier University in Antigonish,
TEL: 604-591-5423
N.S., in 2022 and 2023. One woman testified that Jegede choked her; one woman was forced to perform oral sex. Both women said they were physically dominated by Jegede, who is much larger than they are. Continued on Page 9...
Gaba Tire
ALL TIRES AVAILABLE (AS, AT MT & SEMI TRUCK)
Home sales dipped in November, with 'holding pattern' expected to continue into 2026 Canada’s housing market took a modest step back in November, as national home sales declined slightly and prices softened following several months of relative stability. The Canadian Real Estate Association says home sales recorded over Canadian MLS Systems fell 0.6% month over month in November. Actual (not seasonally adjusted) activity came in 10.7% below November 2024, suggesting demand remains uneven as the market heads toward year-end.
“At this point it’s looking like the mid-year rally in housing demand has veered into more of a holding pattern heading into 2026. Continued on Page 10...
WHOLESALE TIRES Installation Available
ABBOTSFORD
31324 - 107 Peardonville Rd 604-897-3235 604-746-4222
KAMLOOPS
133 Wilson Street 250-572-5444
'Cloud' of tension between Aboriginal title and private property ownership lands in BC Decades ago one of B.C.'s top judges described the tension between the concept of Aboriginal title and the reality of private property ownership in British Columbia as a "cloud." Once on the "far horizon," then-B.C. Appeal Court Justice Mary Southin said legal questions about the status of
Another Hindu lynched in Bangladesh
title on properties ranging from ranches to houses to Vancouver office towers had grown from the size of "a child's hand" to "lower over the whole of the Province." Last week, just as Southin predicted it eventually would, the "cloud" touched down in Richmond. Continued on Page 10...
A fresh lynching of a Hindu man in Bangladesh has sharpened concerns over minority safety in the country, the killing coming just a day ahead of the high-profile return of Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) acting chairman and former PM Khaleda Zia’s son Tarique Rahman after more than 17 years in self-exile. Local media reported that Amrit Mondal, alias Samrat (29), a member of the Hindu minority community, was beaten to death by a mob late on Wednesday night in Pangsha Upazila of Rajbari district. The killing adds to a growing list of mob violence incidents amid a volatile political climate and sustained unrest following last year’s collapse of the Sheikh Hasina government. Continued on Page 12...
2
SATURDAY, DECEMBER 27, 2025
B.C. man pleads guilty to charges of sextorting teens across Canada A Burnaby, B.C., man has pleaded guilty to charges related to the online sexual extortion of teens in several Canadian provinces. Anwer Jelassi, now 21, pled guilty on Dec. 22 to extortion against eight victims between Oct. 14 and Nov. 8 in 2022, extortion from Dec. 22 to 25, 2023, secretly recording sexual activity on or about Dec. 22, 2023, distribution of child pornography from Oct. 17 to 30, 2022, and publication of intimate images without consent from Oct. 14, 2022 to Jan. 23, 2023. The BC Prosecution Service said Jelassi also pleaded guilty to breach of undertaking from Dec. 22, 2023. All offences are alleged to have occurred in Burnaby, the Prosecution Service said. Mounties began investigating the case after victims in Nova Scotia, Quebec and Ontario
reported being extorted by someone they’d met on social media with whom they’d shared explicit images. Burnaby RCMP alleged the suspect then threatened to share the images with the victims’ social networks if they didn’t pay him money. The majority of the victims were between the ages of 15 and 18, according to police. Jelassi’s sentencing hearing is scheduled for May 5, 2026.
One lane opens on long-awaited Pattullo Bridge replacement A single northbound lane on the long-awaited Pattullo Bridge replacement has opened to traffic, marking the first step in a phased opening process. The lane allows northbound vehicles from Surrey to cross the Fraser River and exit onto East Columbia Street in New Westminster, according to the Ministry of Transportation and Transit. The bridge is named (Riverview) Bridge, which means “a space where you can view the river." Drivers heading north are being directed to stay in the right lane on King George Boulevard to access the new bridge. All other traffic, including pedestrians and cyclists, will continue to use the older Pattullo Bridge, which remains open in both directions during this phase. The ministry says traffic will be shifted to the new bridge in stages to allow crews to complete connections to existing roadways on both sides of the river. Further phases are expected to begin in January and will involve different lane configurations. As part of that work, the ministry says there will also be a one-week closure of both the old Pattullo Bridge and Riverview Bridge in mid to late January. The ministry says that work will depend on weather conditions and exact dates will be announced once confirmed. Once all four lanes of the new bridge are open, the province plans to begin dismantling the old Pattullo Bridge, a process, it says, that will take about two years. The replacement project, now estimated to cost $1.67 billion, is intended to address long-standing safety concerns with the existing bridge, which
was built in the 1930s and carries roughly 60,000 vehicles a day. In 2016, a report presented to TransLink's board of directors showed the bridge did not meet modern wind and seismic safety standards. The report to Metro Vancouver's transit authority recommended the bridge be replaced by no later than 2024.
The bridge was originally expected to open in 2023, but the timeline was pushed back several times. The province has previously cited pandemic-related delays, inflation, global supplychain issues and the complexity of building the bridge’s 167-metre tower. New Westminster Coun. Ruby Campbell said residents have been waiting years to see progress on the replacement project. “It’s great to see this project moving forward,” Campbell said. "So it's a big day." She acknowledged the project has faced repeated delays but said its scale made some of those challenges inevitable. “Sure, we were hoping for more, but big infrastructure projects take a lot of time, a lot of people, a lot of supplies, a lot of engineering," she said.
Unauthorized health products seized from 2 nutrition stores in Maple Ridge
Areas of Practice ICBC/Personal Injury Immigration Law Corporate / Commercial Real Estate / Property Development
Health Canada is issuing a public advisory after unauthorized health products were seized from two nutrition and supplement stores in Maple Ridge. The advisory lists dozens of products, including injectable peptides, anabolic steroids and testosterone compounds, which Health Canada says are used for bodybuilding, antiaging, enhancing athletic performance or weight loss. It says the products found at Maxximus Supplements and Cutting Edge Nutrition were not authorized by Health Canada and have not been assessed for safety, efficacy, and quality. Health Canada says the seized drugs include Selective Androgen Receptor Modulators,
which are not authorized in Canada for any use and have not been reviewed for safety. It says the androgen drug can pose significant health risks and are associated with druginduced liver damage, heart attack, and stroke. Other items seized include a prescription drug used to treat post-menopausal patients with breast cancer, a veterinary drug for respiratory diseases in horses that hasn’t been approved for humans, and a prescription drug for high blood pressure that is not authorized for sale in Canada. Health Canada says anyone who has the unauthorized products should not use them and consult a health-care professional if they have already taken them and have health concerns.
Woman dead after being struck by police vehicle in Surrey on Christmas
Puneet P.K. Sandhar
Barinder S. Sanghera
B.A.,LL.B. (GND)
B.Comm.,LL.B. (UBC)
psandhar@slglawyers.com
bss@slglawyers.com
#201, 12565 88 Ave, Surrey, B.C. V3W 3J7
Phone: 604.543.8484 Fax: 604.543.8584
info@slglawyers.com www.slglawyers.com
A woman is dead after being struck by a police vehicle at a Chevron gas station in Surrey, B.C., on Christmas morning, prompting a watchdog investigation. The pedestrian collision happened as a member of the Surrey Police Service was pulling out of the gas station around 6 a.m., according to the Independent Investigations Office. The watchdog, which is notified of every policeinvolved incident resulting in death or serious harm, said it’s in the early stages of investigating what happened. B.C. Emergency Health Services told CTV News two ambulances responded to the collision, and that paramedics treated the pedestrian at the scene before rushing her to hospital in critical condition. In a short statement issued Thursday afternoon, the Surrey Police Service confirmed the woman
has “tragically passed away.” “SPS is unable to provide additional information while the IIO’s independent process is taking place,” the department said. Authorities have not shared any details on the deceased’s identity, except that she was an adult. The IIO asked anyone who witnessed Thursday’s incident to contact the watchdog’s tollfree line at 1-855-446-8477 or fill out the contact form on its website.
SATURDAY, DECEMBER 27, 2025
Instructor who called Oct. 7 attack ‘amazing, brilliant’ reinstated by BC college, then resigns A college instructor who called the Hamas attack on Oct. 7, 2023 an "amazing, brilliant offensive” had her job reinstated by an arbitrator, then resigned from her position. The Federation of Post-Secondary Educators of B.C. (FPSE), which represents faculty at several B.C. post-secondary institutions, called the decision — issued by arbitrator Randy Noonan on Nov. 19 — to reinstate Natalie Knight to her
position at Vancouver's Langara College a victory for academic freedom and freedom of speech. Langara ended Knight’s employment in January 2024, according to an arbitration decision posted online. Knight was seen on video describing the Oct. 7 attack as "amazing, brilliant" during a speech at the Vancouver Art Gallery on Oct. 28, 2023. A group called United in Struggle, which Knight claimed to be a member of in her speech, had posted a version of the video. The college said in November 2023 that an instructor was on leave and the matter was under investigation. Knight was reinstated on Jan. 18, 2024, the decision said, and the college advised her that she was expected to follow college policies and “must take care that her future conduct could not be reasonably interpreted as promoting violence
3
Police cruiser rammed, suspect flees in attempted Langley traffic stop
against civilians.” Langara employee no longer on the job after 'activities contrary to the expectations' of the college The college sent her a “letter of expectation” on Jan. 22, 2024, according to the decision. Knight attended a pro-Palestinian rally the next day where she was pictured holding a sign that read “There is only one solution, Intifada Revolution,” and gave a speech stating she had done “nothing wrong,” the decision reads. Knight’s presence at the January rally drew comment from Selina Robinson, then B.C.’s minister of post-secondary education. "I am disappointed this instructor [Knight] continues to have a public post-secondary platform to spew hatred and vitriol," the minister wrote on X. "I have met with @langaracollege to express my concerns for the Langara and broader communities. They agree everyone deserves to feel safe." Langara ended Knight’s employment after determining her conduct on Jan. 23, 2024, was “contrary to the expectations laid out by the Employer and the employment relationship was irretrievably damaged,” according to the ruling. In an emailed Jan. 26 statement, the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs said the Vancouver Jewish community applauded the dismissal, calling it a step toward helping “restore trust between the college and its Jewish and Israeli students.” The Langara Faculty Association filed a grievance, arguing that Knight’s termination violated the collective agreement, B.C.’s Human Rights Code, the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, and the college’s stated principles of academic freedom and freedom of expression.
Police in Langley are on the lookout for a suspect who deliberately rammed an RCMP cruiser and nearly struck two officers during an attempted traffic stop on Wednesday morning. The incident happened just after 10:30 a.m. in the 19900 block of Willowbrook Drive, near Willowbrook Mall, when police received a report of a suspicious vehicle parked in the area. Two officers arrived to find the driver slumped over the wheel. When one officer attempted to wake the driver, the driver regained consciousness, put the vehicle in drive and intentionally hit the police cruiser, which had its emergency lights on. Video circulating social media of the incident shows a dark Audi accelerating and pushing the
RCMP cruiser back before fleeing the scene, as an officer scrambles to get out of the way. Further investigation has determined that the licence plates on the car were stolen and had been switched. “This was an extremely dangerous situation that put both officers and members of the public at significant risk,” said Sgt. Zynal Sharoom of the Langley RCMP in a news release. “The driver’s decision to use a vehicle as a weapon and flee at a high rate of speed is unacceptable, and investigators are actively working to identify and locate those responsible.” Anyone with information, dashcam footage or CCTV from the area is asked to contact Langley RCMP and quote file number 202541931.
200 – 6245 - 136th St., Surrey, B.C. V3X 1H3
4
SATURDAY, DECEMBER 27, 2025
Highway 3 reopens weeks after being damaged in BC storm Weeks after a series of atmospheric rivers caused extensive damage to Highway 3 through southwestern B.C., crews have managed to reopen the route. Contractors worked late on Christmas Eve to finish repairing a major washout between Hope and Princeton, allowing for an early reopening—in what the Ministry of Transportation and Transit called a “holiday miracle.” “The reopening of Highway 3 happened sooner
than anticipated because of the around-the-clock efforts of ministry contractors and the availability of materials,” officials said in a news release just before midnight on Dec. 24. For now, traffic will be single-lane alternating on a temporary detour, with a reduced speed limit of 30 km/h. Drivers heading toward Hope will also be “held approximately 500 metres east of the site to avoid lineups in an avalanche area where no stopping is permitted,” the ministry said. Officials recommended that commercial drivers use an alternative route until two-lane traffic can be restored that spot. Highway 3 had been completely shut down since Dec. 16, when extreme weather caused damage to approximately two dozen different sites along the route. There were washouts, rocks and other debris at various points, officials said.
Pedestrian dead in hit-and-run collision in White Rock A pedestrian died Tuesday in a hit-and-run collision in White Rock. White Rock RCMP say shortly before 1 p.m., officers responded to a report of an injured person on the road in the 15600-block of Cliff Avenue. A bystander was administering CPR when they arrived. Despite life-saving efforts, the person died. Police determined the person had been struck by a car. White Rock RCMP investigators are trying to identify the driver involved. Investigators have identified a suspect vehicle, which has since been located and seized by police.
Anyone who was in the area and has dashcam footage or who witnessed anything is asked to contact White Rock RCMP at 778-545-4800.
‘More infectious’ flu strain adds pressure as child cases rise Canada’s flu season is starting early, with experts warning of higher case counts across the country. Dr. Christopher Labos, an epidemiologist, said this year’s flu “does actually appear to be more infectious and more virulent,” noting in an interview with CTV News Channel that influenza usually peaks later in the season. Labos highlighted the strain H3N2 as particularly infectious. He advised that “if you are sick, stay home.” In Ottawa, the Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario told CTV News they saw more than 200 patients a day in its emergency department last week. “Unfortunately, we’ve seen deaths in the area and we’ve seen an overwhelming number of hospital visits and hospitalizations,” a spokesperson for the hospital said. In a Dec. 24 report, British Columbia’s Centre for Disease Control reported “high levels (of positive influenza tests) observed in children,” with wastewater testing showing “recent signs of (an influenza) increase in most sites.” On Wednesday, the IWK Health Centre in Halifax reported a “large increase in the number of children coming to the emergency department with flu-like symptoms.” In a Facebook post, the hospital went on to warn that children younger than five are at “higher risk for serious illness.” In the week ending on Dec. 13, Health Canada reported a three-season high in positive tests, at 27.7 per cent.
In a Dec. 19 interview, infectious disease specialist Dr. Isaac Bogoch told CTVNews.ca that this year’s flu season is especially significant. Dr. Bogoch said that of the three strains currently circulating, H3N2, the one that Dr. Labos highlighted, was predominant. “Years that are H3N2 dominant tend to put more
pressure on (the) health-care system,” Bogoch said on Friday. He advised Canadians who have not yet received their flu shot to do so, saying it’s not too late. The World Health Organization (WHO) reported on Wednesday that H3N2 is “predominant in all zones except Tropical South America and Northern Africa.” Around the world, the WHO said “influenza activity was elevated,” but ”detections were stable.” The WHO’s report is based on data from the week ending on Dec. 14.
Read more news online or view Digital Copy of Newspaper at:
www.TheAsianStar.com
OPINION
SATURDAY, DECEMBER 27, 2025
5
Basic Income in Canada is closer than you think
Ph: 604-591-5423 Fax: 604-591-8615 editor@theasianstar.com Editor: Umendra Singh Marketing and Sales: Ravi Cheema 604-715-3847 Shamir Doshi 604-649-7827 Harminder Kaur 778-708-0481 Parminder Dhillon 604-902-2858 Pre-Press: Avee Waseer Production: Ozmo Media
www.theasianstar.com
Publication Mail Agreement No 428336012 Return undeliverable Canadian addresses to Circulation Dept.
# 202 - 8388, 128 St., Surrey, BC V3W 4G2 All advertising in The Asian Star is subject to the publishers’ approval and the advertiser agrees to indemnify the publishers against claims arising from publication of any advertisement submitted by the advertiser.
Although few people would explicitly declare that poor people are morally deficient, our welfare systems are nonetheless designed around suspicion rather than support. Like many social assistance policies, opposition to guaranteed income is driven by a deep-seated fear of fraud — of “freeloaders” benefiting from the taxes of hard-working, morally upright citizens. Our collective delusion that we live in a meritocracy is operationalized into a punitive framework that rationalizes who deserves help and who does not. As a result, we spend enormous administrative effort policing eligibility, while leaving many people without adequate help. Poverty persists not because we lack resources, but because we mistrust the people who need them. For years, a guaranteed livable basic income has been framed as a radical or unrealistic idea—something perpetually out of reach in Canadian politics. That narrative no longer holds. Basic income is not only being debated seriously at the federal level; it is making its way through Parliament. Senate Bill S-206, An Act to develop a national framework for a guaranteed livable basic income, passed second reading last month and is currently before the Standing Senate Committee on National Finance. Sponsored by Senator Kim Pate, the bill reflects a growing recognition that income insecurity is not a marginal issue but a structural one. According to Senator Pate, a guaranteed livable basic income has the potential to lift people out of poverty, reduce crime, and support those attempting to leave abusive relationships. This is not a fringe proposal. It is a pragmatic response to well-documented social failures. The road to S-206 has been long, but persistent. In 2021, NDP Member of Parliament Leah Gazan introduced Bill C-223, the National Framework for a Guaranteed Livable Basic Income Act, in the House of Commons. Although the bill was defeated in 2024, the idea did not disappear. Senator Pate had already introduced an identical bill—S-233—in the Senate. That bill died when the 44th Parliament was dissolved, but it was revived in the current session as S-206. This continuity matters.
It signals that basic income is no longer a one-off proposal tied to a single MP or party, but a sustained policy effort with institutional backing. Canada is not entering this conversation blindly. The Manitoba Basic Annual Income Experiment, better known as “Mincome,” offers one of the most significant real-world tests of guaranteed income anywhere in the world. Conducted in Winnipeg and Dauphin, Manitoba in the 1970s, Mincome provided a guaranteed annual income to participants and tracked the results. Subsequent analysis (Forget, 2011) found only modest reductions in working hours among recipients, primarily among new mothers and students. Far from abandoning work, people used the income stability to make rational, life-enhancing choices. More strikingly, crime rates dropped by 17.5 per cent. Researchers also observed improvements in physical and mental health in Dauphin during the pilot period. While the data cannot conclusively
attribute these outcomes to guaranteed income, the correlation is difficult to ignore. In short, the social collapse predicted by opponents never materialized. The most common argument against basic income is that it will discourage participation in the labour market. But this question is often misdirected. For those of us who have our basic needs covered, work is not just about income. For many people, employment—or self-employment, caregiving, or artistic practice—provides structure, social connection, purpose, and dignity. Unemployment is consistently associated with higher rates of depression and anxiety, not leisure and fulfillment. Basic income is not about making people wealthy. It is about ensuring that no one falls below a minimum standard of living. The assumption that people will stop contributing if their basic needs are met reveals more about our distrust of human motivation than about economic reality.
6
SATURDAY, DECEMBER 27, 2025
Judge dismisses lawsuit from families of Humboldt Broncos crash in Saskatchewan A judge in Saskatchewan has dismissed a lawsuit from families of the deadly Humboldt Broncos bus crash. In his decision last week, Judge Graeme Mitchell of Court of King’s Bench in Regina said the families’ allegations are not sound in law and lack merit.
“Even accepting all allegations in the proposed pleading to be true, it is plain and obvious that it is doomed to fail,” Mitchell wrote in the Dec. 16 decision. In 2018, 16 people were killed and 13 injured when a rookie trucker went through a stop sign and into the path of the junior hockey team’s bus at a rural intersection near Tisdale, Sask., northeast of Saskatoon. The truck driver, Jaskirat Singh Sidhu, was sentenced to eight years in prison for dangerous driving offences. He was also ordered to be deported to India. The families of four players and an assistant coach who were killed in the crash filed a lawsuit in July 2018 against the province, Sidhu, the trucking
company and the motorcoach business used by the team. One of the allegations made in the lawsuit was that the province knew the intersection had visibility problems but did nothing to fix it. In his decision, Mitchell cited a section of a provincial law that bars lawsuits when someone is killed or injured in a vehicle crash. The rule is part of Saskatchewan’s insurance scheme where the province guarantees certain benefits to those hurt in a crash, but drivers give up the ability to sue. The families had argued such a provision violates certain Charter rights, preventing them from holding the province accountable. Mitchell said the right to life, which is covered in Section 7 of the Charter, cannot be applied to the case. “While it may be argued that their quality of life has been radically affected by the premature deaths of their respective loved ones, this does not and cannot engage the right to life under (Section 7) of the Charter,” he wrote. “All aspects of the proposed pleading relating to the (Automobile Accident Insurance Act) are doomed to fail and must be struck out entirely.” The judge’s decision awards costs to the defendants at an amount that is to be determined.
Read more news online or view Digital Copy of Newspaper at:
www.TheAsianStar.com
APPLIANCES REPAIR SERVICE FRIDGES WASHERS DRYERS STOVES DISHWASHERS
RCMP say 70 trees deliberately cut, left to die in Powell River Police on B.C.'s Sunshine Coast are investigating the vandalism of approximately 70 trees that they say were deliberately cut, leaving them to die over the next year. RCMP say the City of Powell River was notified of the damage to the fir trees, located in the community's old golf course lands, on Nov. 26. Police say municipal staff inspected the site and found the trees were left standing but had been cut around their bases, likely with a chainsaw. The damage was described as "multiple cuts around the entire trunk," and officials say all the trees are expected to die within the year. "We'd like to get to the bottom of this. It is a a serious act of vandalism," said Kevin Clarkson, the manager of parks and facilities for the City of Powell River. "There's about 70 trees that have been cut. It's not a small feat," he added in an interview with CBC News. Clarkson said that many of the trees that were cut were oldergrowth Douglas fir that had a lot of value to the community and ecosystem.
Purple haze in the sky over Delta, sets off awe, curiosity and questions On the darkest nights of winter when the cloud cover is just right, there's a purple haze above parts of Metro Vancouver and it has nothing to do with Christmas or Jimi Hendrix. Cathy Latremouille said she looked outside her Crescent Beach home in Surrey on Friday night to see what looked like a "great big candy floss sky." "I've never seen anything like it before," said Latremouille. "It's a good thing I don't face south, I would have thought the United States was going up in flames." The magenta glow was a puzzle.
Fast-Prompt-Reliable CALL US TODAY!
604 833 0068
(604)771-3089 Fax: (778)654-9226 | Email: info@NaiyaGillLaw.ca
www.NaiyaGillLaw.ca 9850 King George Blvd Unit 536, Suite 300, Surrey, BC
"There are trails in there that kind of lead down to an area called Second Beach as well as kind of extend further and go towards the centre of town through Willington Beach Park," the official said. "So it's frequented quite regularly by a number of residents, and used extensively." Police say anyone with information about the damage to the trees are asked to contact investigators or Crime Stoppers.
"I don't think the aliens were landing, or anything," chuckled Latremouille, a retired broadcaster. She asked the question as she posted a photo on Facebook and most agreed that the glow was coming from the greenhouses across Boundary Bay, located south of her home. Greenhouse produce grower Windset Farms said in a statement that there are a number of greenhouses in the Lower Mainland that use the colourful LED lights, but their greenhouses are equipped with light abatement screens to keep the light inside when its dark. "This is something we implemented, but it is not mandatory in the area," the statement says. Delta Mayor George Harvie has had a long history with the greenhouse lights in his community. As the city manager more than two decades ago, Harvie said he reached out to the provincial
government about the beacon of light the greenhouses throw out at night but was rebuffed. Harvie said some people may not be happy with the lights but they are legal, and the COVID pandemic has taught them that local food production is extremely critical. "Be honest with you, we don't get many complaints," said Harvie. Ian Paton, the B.C. Conservative member of the legislature for Delta-South, said in an interview that he is starting to get complaints from some residents in the area. Paton's family has a farm next to the Boundary Bay Airport in Delta, B.C., and said one of the greenhouses that emits the purple light is just a few kilometres away. "We see it every night," he said. Other greenhouses in the area are also lighting up the sky, but those lights are more natural, he said in an interview. "You know, they could put some kind of shade on top of their windows so that the light stays inside the greenhouse instead of going outside," Paton said. The Department of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada says on its website that the full spectrum LED can combine red, blue and amber lighting to encourage plants to make their own nutrients. The department says the LEDs not only increase plant yield, but can significantly improve nutritional quality. The colourful lights didn't bother Latremouille. "We've got all the houses lit up with beautiful lights around here, too. I thought, oh, that's just one more," she said. She admits to some worry about the strange lights, adding it was good to get an explanation on social media. "Anything's possible nowadays. I just kind of, you know, you get to be my age. It's all weird," she said.
SATURDAY, DECEMBER 27, 2025
Mexico seizes Olympic medals, motorcycles in raids seemingly linked to hunt for Canadian fugitive Ryan Wedding Mexican authorities say they've seized motorcycles, Olympic medals and drugs in a series of raids — a move seemingly linked to the hunt for Canadian fugitive Ryan Wedding. The operation amounts to the most significant series of moves publicly acknowledged by Mexico that appear to be in connection with the manhunt for the alleged cartel-linked drug lord. The government’s statement didn’t identify Wedding by name, but said the raids targeted a foreign former Olympian listed among U.S. authorities’ most wanted fugitives. Only Wedding — who was born in Thunder Bay, Ont., and competed in snowboarding at the 2002 Olympic Games in Utah — fits the bill. Mexican media also named the 44-year-old as the target of the operation. The statement from Mexico's security secretariat said four properties were raided in Mexico City and the nearby state of Mexico, a region that includes some of the capital's suburbs.
The operation involved multiple agencies, including Mexico's navy, national guard and federal agents from the attorney general’s office, the Fiscalía General de la República (FGR). Mexican authorities said items seized included: • 62 high-end motorcycles. • Two vehicles. • Two Olympic medals. • Methamphetamine. • Marijuana. • Works of art. • Ammunition.
• Documents. Who the medals belong to isn't clear. Wedding finished 24th in the parallel giant slalom event in 2002 and did not return to the Olympics. U.S. authorities and the RCMP have said Wedding later turned to a life of crime and built a billion-dollar drug-smuggling empire linked to dozens of murders. He’s believed to be hiding in Mexico. The U.S. is offering a reward of up to $15 million US for information leading to Wedding’s capture. The U.S. Treasury Department recently said Wedding uses luxury cars, motorcycles, properties, front companies and cryptocurrency as part of a “complex web” of assets to shield his vast wealth. Last month, the FBI in Miami seized an ultrarare Mercedes-Benz CLK-GTR Roadster, estimated to be worth $13 million. A CBC News investigation found the car had been purchased by Rolan Sokolovski, a Toronto jeweller identified by U.S. authorities as one of Wedding’s chief money launderers. U.S. investigators have also previously hinted at Wedding’s possible connection to the Mexican capital and the nearby state of Mexico. The FBI told CBC in August that it had launched a social media campaign focused on the capital’s suburbs in central Mexico, seeking to elicit tips on Wedding’s hideout. "We believe that there are potentially people in that area who have information about his whereabouts," FBI spokesperson Laura Eimiller said at the time. A CBC review of public records found Daniela Alejandra Acuna Macias, named by U.S. authorities as Wedding’s Colombian-born girlfriend, has an address listed in the region, just beyond the western edge of Mexico City. The area is only a short drive from the Santa Fe business district, which — according to an analysis by CBC’s visual investigations unit — is where Wedding was seen wearing a blue cap and white T-shirt in a 2024 picture released by the FBI. According to court records, Wedding met with his alleged right-hand man, Andrew Clark, and drug trafficker-turned-FBI witness Jonathan AcebedoGarcia in a Mexico City coffee shop in January 2024. Montreal-born Acebedo-Garcia was assassinated in Colombia a year later in a brazen shooting that U.S. prosecutors say was orchestrated by Wedding. An Ontario court this week granted bail to Deepak Paradkar, the Toronto-area defence lawyer alleged to have counselled Wedding to carry out the murder. Paradkar has denied wrongdoing.
7
BC sues driver, trucking company involved in recurring bridge strikes The B.C. government has sued a trucking company and one of its drivers for damages after a truck slammed into a bridge along Highway 99. The incident, which occurred Dec. 28, 2023, involved Chohan Carriers Ltd. and driver Jasveer Singh Sangha, who was hauling an “overheight load” when it struck the 112 Street bridge underpass in Delta, B.C. The collision caused significant damage to the bridge’s concrete stringers and supporting structures, according to the lawsuit. The bridge strike was among a string of accidents involving trucking companies in recent years. In response, then minister of transportation Rob Fleming issued a formal cancellation notice to Chohan Freight Forwarders Ltd. for its operations in B.C. “This is the most severe action that can be taken against a company with multiple infractions. It sends a clear message to operators that infrastructure crashes around our province need to stop,” Fleming said in February 2024. “It has never been easier to follow a route to guide a load safely through our highway system and avoid the potential for impact with infrastructure.” At the time, Chohan’s drivers had been involved in six overpass and/or bridge crashes since 2021, including four in 2022 alone. In the days following the Dec. 28, 2023, collision, Chohan said Sangha (who it claimed was not a company driver) failed to wait to receive his permit and route directions for his oversized load. Chohan later filed a lawsuit in B.C. Supreme Court against the transportation ministry in an effort to overturn the suspension of the company’s safety certificate. The Aldergrove-based company claimed it had suffered damage to its reputation, with the
resulting loss of business costing it millions of dollars. The B.C. government’s latest lawsuit contends Sangha—whose occupation and address remain unknown to the province—was a Chohan employee, company agent working under its authority, or had acquired the truck with the consent of Chohan.
In any case, the province said Chohan is “vicariously liable” for Sangha’s conduct. The province claims the crash was the result of negligence. Sangha is accused of driving at an excessive speed, failing to stay in the proper lane, failing to maintain a proper distance from other vehicles, and operating a vehicle while impaired by fatigue, alcohol or drugs, the lawsuit says. The document claims the defendants failed to secure necessary oversized-load permits, ignored height restrictions, and failed to verify the route’s clearance. The claim also alleges Chohan Carriers failed to adequately train its driver or implement safety policies to prevent foreseeable infrastructure damage. The Ministry of Transportation and Transit is seeking to recover all costs related to repairs, including wages and materials, plus interest. The lawsuit does not indicate how much the accident cost the province. Sangha and Chohan Carriers have 21 days to respond. None of the claims have been tested in court.
8
SATURDAY, DECEMBER 27, 2025
SATURDAY, DECEMBER 27, 2025
Rural RCMP officers disrupt major fraud scheme targeting B.C. First Nation Alert Bay RCMP has successfully intervened in a complex, multi-jurisdictional fraud investigation targeting the ‘Namgis First Nation, preventing a total loss of funds intended for the construction of a new wellness and treatment centre. On May 13, the First Nation reported being defrauded of roughly $406,000 after a fraudulent email redirected a payment meant for contractors to a fake account. “Through swift investigative action, RCMP frontline officers were able to freeze a significant amount of money in a bank account linked to an organized crime group operating out of Eastern Canada,” said the Alert Bay RCMP’s news release on Dec. 22. The freezing of the funds will allow the ‘Namgis First Nation to get the money back through court processes. Alert Bay RCMP led an execution of a search warrant at a residence in Aurora, Ont. (57 minutes north of Toronto). Police uncovered forged documents, bank tokens, electronic devices, and a large quantity of suspected counterfeit currency, which led to the identification of suspects connected to organized crime and other major fraud cases across Canada. Alert Bay RCMP is also collaborating with the Commissaire à la lutte contre la corruption
(CLCC) and other agencies to dismantle organized financial crime networks in Canada. “Unlike most major financial crime investigations, which are typically handled by specialized units, this case was spearheaded by frontline officers at the Alert Bay RCMP detachment,” said Sgt. David Ribeiro, detachment commander of Alert Bay RCMP detachment. “Their proactive approach, persistence, and collaboration with multiple agencies across Canada were instrumental in freezing funds and uncovering links to organized crime. Our officers not only identified the fraud quickly but also navigated complex legal processes and coordinated nationally—something rarely seen at the detachment level.” The investigation is still active.
Person struck and killed in White Rock hit-and-run White Rock, B.C., RCMP is investigating a fatal hit-and-run that happened on Tuesday afternoon. Investigators have identified and seized a suspect vehicle, but the driver remains unaccounted for, according to police. RCMP said officers were called to a report of an injured person on the road in the 15600 block of Cliff Avenue at 12:41 p.m. When officers arrived, they said a bystander was administering CPR, but despite life-saving efforts,
the person was declared deceased. Based on initial observations, it is believed that the person was hit by a vehicle, according to RCMP. The Integrated Collision Analysis and Reconstruction Service (ICARS) has been called out to process the scene. Anyone who was in the area and has dash camera footage or who witnessed anything is asked to contact White Rock RCMP at 778-545-4800.
Bricks of cocaine found in container of frozen fruit from Colombia in BC: CBSA
The Canada Border Services Agency says it seized more than 26 kilograms of cocaine hidden in a shipping container hauling boxes frozen fruit from Colombia back in October. The border agency says the drugs were found at the Tsawwassen Container Examination Facility on October 31. It says the agency’s officers, with the help of detector dogs, found 23 bricks of cocaine
concealed in the ceiling of the shipping container that was declared as a shipment of frozen fruit. The border agency says the drugs are now in the hands of the drug and organized crime investigators with the RCMP. The agency says its officers have made more than 10,000 narcotic seizures between January and October this year, including more than 700 kilograms of cocaine.
Port Coquitlam man charged with murder of soccer player A man has been charged the murder, six years ago, of Edi Bogere, a soccer star from Coquitlam. Bogere, 24, was last seen leaving his Coquitlam home on the evening of Dec. 27, 2019, according to the Integrated Homicide Investigation Team’s Sgt. Freda Fong. His body was found on Jan. 11, 2020, in a vacant forested property in Maple Ridge. “Upon assessment of the scene by the Ridge Meadows RCMP, his death was determined to be suspicious, and the Integrated Homicide Investigation Team was called to investigate,” Fong said. “IHIT investigators worked
diligently on a years-long investigation to establish the circumstances surrounding Mr. Bogere’s death, which resulted in the identification of the suspect.” Alan Mohammed Taheri, 31, of Port Coquitlam was arrested on Dec. 19 and has been charged with one count of second-degree murder with a firearm and one count of indignity to human remains. Reports at the time identified Bogere as a talented soccer player and a member of Coquitlam’s Sparta SC U-18 squad that won the Canadian National Championship.
Judge reduces sex criminal's jail time because of his race
Continued from Page 1... The author of an Impact of Race and Culture Assessment, a report funded under a new initiative from the Trudeau Liberals, wrote that Jegede was feeling intense pressure around the time of the assaults and did not have culturally appropriate support to turn to. Jgede was convicted in a jury trial this year and sentenced Wednesday. Justice Hoskins added three years of probation, although he said that term could be shortened if Jegede makes significant progress in counselling. The Crown had requested a sentence of up to 36 months, while defence counsel asked the judge to consider a conditional sentence to be served in the community. “In my view, this is a case where the need for denunciation is so pressing the incarceration is the only civil way in which to express society’s condemnation of Mr. Jegede’s conduct,” said Justice Hoskins. Later he began a degree in kinetics at St. FX, though those studies were interrupted by his crimes and subsequent charges. Nonetheless, he expressed interest in completing his degree and pursuing a masters, Justice Hoskins said. He noted that Jegede was born in Lagos, Nigeria. He moved with his family to Canada in 2010. They lived first in Brampton, Ont., and then moved west to Fort McMurray, Alta. His mother said the transition to Canada was a significant adjustment for the family, and said their youngest
son “experienced bullying in elementary school due to his accent and racial identity as a black child.” The IRCA writer looked at this kind of cultural factor, outlining declines in Jegede’s course performance and mental health in his second and third years at St. FX. Jegede told the writer that he struggled with a sense of isolation being a black man in predominantly white university town. “I grew up around black people in Brampton and Fort McMurray. Many of them were immigrants, which allowed us to relate to each other on many levels, especially culture. It was like that until I moved to Antigonish to attend university.” Reading from the IRCA, Justice Hoskins said: “The absence of adult mentors or role models further exacerbated Mr. Jegede’s vulnerability. His parents had hoped his football coach would provide guidance, but this need went unmet.” Hoskins said the IRCA “provided valuable insight. It has provided me with an understanding of Mr. Jegede’s background from a social, cultural perspective.” Hoskins went on to note that the “primary aggravating factor, in this case, is the violence and serious evasive nature of the sexual assaults, particularly the offence involving (one of the victims), where she was forced to provide Mr. Jegede oral sex, while her movements were being forcefully controlled by (him).”
9
C.S.T. Consultants Inc.
BC Helps Parents Boost their Education Savings! Start saving for your child’s future education in a Registered Education Savings Plan (RESP) and receive up to $8,400 in government grants.1 Open a CST RESP now and you’ll start receiving the Canada Education Savings grant (CESG). The CESG can add up to $7,200 to your child’s RESP. When your child turns six, they can receive an additional $1,200 from the B.C. Government. SURJIT S. MADHOPURI Sales Representative C.S.T. Consultants Inc., Branch 789 Tel: 604.594.7200 / Cell: 604.377.4171 Email: surjit.madhopuri@cstresp.com http://www.cstresp.com/6117
1 The Canada Education Savings Grant matches 20% of the first $2,500 you contribute to your child’s RESP each year up to a lifetime maximum of $7,200. BC Training and Education Savings Grant (BCTESG) is a one-time $1,200 grant available to BC resident children born on or after January 1st, 2006. Children are eligible for the BCTESG on their sixth birthday. You have until the day before your child’s ninth birthday to apply for the BCTESG. Conditions apply. ™ The Canadian Scholarship Trust Plan is a registered trademark of the Canadian Scholarship Trust Foundation. The CST Plan is only sold by Prospectus. You can get copies of the prospectus from www.cst.org or by calling 1.877.333.RESP(7377). MH1100(2017-04)
10
SATURDAY, DECEMBER 27, 2025
'Cloud' of tension between Aboriginal title and private property ownership lands in BC Continued from Page 1... A townhall full of homeowners who just learned they may have to share land title with the Quw'utsun (Cowichan) Nation gathered to hear the city's mayor and lawyers explain the implications of a court decision very few have read, but on which nearly everyone has an opinion. "The bottom line ... is that Aboriginal title cannot co-exist with fee simple ownership [the legal name for private property title]," Richmond city solicitor Tony Capuccinello Iraci told the crowd at one point. Except that it can and does, according to Victoria B.C. Supreme Court Justice Barbara Young, who awarded the Quw'utsun Aboriginal title this summer to between 300 and 325 hectares of land — including around 150 pieces of private property — just east of the Massey tunnel. Young's decision may go further than any other previous court rulings in addressing the seeming contradiction Southin identified all those years ago, but it's still grounded in the kind of ambiguity that thrives in a courtroom, but falls flat in a packed room full of mortgage payers. "When you've got court decisions — typically ones that deal with this degree of complexity and use all these arcane terms and are 400 pages long or whatever — unless the decision is really definitive, what matters is not the decision, but then how it's interpreted," says Andrew Petter, a lawyer and former provincial NDP minister of Aboriginal affairs. Petter is not a fan of how the province or the City of Richmond have handled the fallout from Young's ruling — in which he sees a call for measured negotiation and reconciliation between the Quw'utsun and the Crown, not hyperbole. "The government didn't help here," Petter told CBC News. "The government basically decided to play
tough guy and by doing so, suggested that the judgment was a threat to private property." The province and the City of Richmond are both appealing Young's decision, as are the other parties to the ruling. In the meantime, they have announced plans to ask for a stay of proceedings — hoping to freeze the ruling Young had already suspended for 18 months. In response, the Quw'utsun are also challenging the result, looking to win title to all 750 hectares — 1,846 acres — claimed at the launch of the lawsuit in 2014 as the site of a traditional village pre-dating the establishment of both British Columbia and Canada. Capuccinello Iraci told the crowd the decision undermines the entirety of B.C.'s land title system, throwing the rights to millions of properties into question and calling on affected homeowners to share stories about the impacts of the decision to buttress the city's legal case. He effectively repeated arguments Young rejected in concluding that Aboriginal title to private property could not be displaced or extinguished. "Richmond’s submission that a declaration of Aboriginal title will destroy the land title system and the [Land Title Act], wreak economic havoc and harm every resident in British Columbia is not a reasoned analysis on the evidence," the judge wrote in her ruling. "It inflames and incites rather than grapples with the evidence and scope of the claim in this case." Young's lengthy ruling is as much a history lesson as it is a legal document, grounded in the deeds of men whose names make up a modernday atlas of British Columbia: Douglas, Moody, Burnaby, Lytton, Seymour. The roots of the Quw'utsun's grievance are grounded in a promise British Columbia's first governor — James Douglas — made in 1859 to exempt Indigenous settlements like Tl'uqtinus from sale or claims from settlers.
Home sales dipped in November, with 'holding pattern' expected to continue into 2026 Continued from Page 1... Coupled with what looks like some price concessions in November in order to get deals done before the end of the year,” said Shaun Cathcart, CREA’s senior economist, in a statement (1). “That said, the Bank of Canada’s clear signal that rates are now about as good as they’re likely going to get is the green light many fixed-rate borrowers have no doubt been waiting for, so we remain of the view that activity will continue to pick up next year.” CREA’s November data points to a market that has largely stalled since mid-summer, rather than one that is accelerating or deteriorating sharply. New listings declined 1.6% month over month in November. With sales also down, the national sales-to-new listings ratio tightened slightly to 52.7%, up from 52.2% in October. CREA notes that the long-term average for this measure is 54.9%, and that readings between roughly 45% and 65% are generally consistent with balanced housing market conditions. At the end of November, there were approximately 173,000 properties listed for sale across Canadian MLS Systems. That figure was 8.5% higher than a year earlier but 2.5% below the long-term average for that time of year. Price data also showed modest declines, reinforcing signs that some sellers are adjusting expectations to close deals before year-end. The National Composite MLS Home Price Index fell 0.4% between October and November and was down 3.7% compared with November
2024. CREA said the monthly dip suggests some sellers are making price concessions amid softer demand. The national average home price was $682,219 in November, down 2% from a year earlier on a non-seasonally adjusted basis. "November was a soft month for resale housing, with Canadian sales and prices both down," said TD Economist Rishi Sondhi in a note (2). "However, November's sales dip was small, and sales have climbed for six of the past eight months. As such, we're not throwing in the towel yet on our view that Canadian sales will grind higher through next year, supported by pent-up demand in B.C. and Ontario, and some improvement in job markets in 2026,” Sondhi noted. Inventory levels also remain largely unchanged, according to CREA. Nationally, there were 4.4 months of inventory at the end of November, consistent with levels seen since July. CREA notes the long-term average is five months, with a seller’s market typically below 3.6 months and a buyer’s market above 6.4 months. Economists suggest that CREA’s November figures point to a housing market that is pausing rather than reversing — with sales holding above spring lows, prices easing modestly and supply conditions remaining broadly balanced. For buyers and sellers alike, the data suggests that the pace of activity heading into early 2026 may depend less on dramatic price shifts and more on how quickly confidence returns as borrowing costs stabilize and households reassess affordability in the months ahead.
FIJI
SATURDAY, DECEMBER 27, 2025
Sacrifice, determination pays off for young father At the age of 23, Sikeli Naucukidi returned to school early this year and has no regrets, as he passed his Fiji Year 13 Certificate examination, gratified with his results, knowing there is hope for a better future. The Delakado, Dawasamu, Tailevu man walks to school everyday for his 8pm classes, walks to his various workstations as a security officer and walks back home because he doesn’t earn much to fill his bus card. “I heard about the Matua Program at Nabua Secondary School from a friend so I told my wife that I’d attend and I had to pay $120 for the year,” he said. “Apart from paying my fees, I had to buy food for my family especially for our daughter and it’s not cheap. But seeing my exam results a few days ago brought tears to my eyes because it has always been God’s faithfulness. “When I spend my weekly pay on these things, I don’t even have enough to pay my bus fare or a taxi to take my daughter to hospital when she is sick or to even treat my wife. “We have made many sacrifices especially me when I walk from home to Vatuwaqa for work or to town, then walk back to Nabua for classes and then
back home in Tamavua. “But I was determined to do this because I want to give my daughter a better and brighter future. I don’t want her to go through what we went through as her parents.” Sikeli and his wife Siteri who hails from Rukuruku on Ovalau have called on school dropouts and school leavers to continue with their education because nothing is impossible. “If my husband can do it, so can anyone who is determined to do better in life. I am a housewife and whatever money my husband earns is enough for us,” Siteri said. “When life is tough, we can have rice and tea as our meal for a few days or curry pawpaw and that’s OK because our goal is to achieve a good future for our daughter.” Sharing the struggles he faced in life while in USP four years ago, Sikeli said it was a real challenge. “I was 19 years old doing Foundation studies at the University of the South Pacific when I found out that my girlfriend and now wife, Siteri Saqabobo was pregnant,” he said. “When she told me the news, I accepted but it was one of the toughest times of our lives because we experienced a backlash from our families and relatives as we were young.
Man dies after alleged stabbing in Bua Police are investigating the death of a man following an alleged stabbing incident at Batinivuriwai Settlement in Wainunu, Bua, early this morning. According to a police statement, the victim was reportedly involved in a brawl at the settlement’s bus shelter before he was later found unconscious. “The victim was discovered lying near the roadside with a stab wound to his chest,”
police said. He was rushed to the Wainunu Health Center, where he was pronounced dead on arrival. Police say investigations are underway to determine the circumstances surrounding the incident and any suspects involved. Authorities are urging members of the public with information to come forward as the case progresses.
Passport probe nears decision The Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions has concluded its analysis concerning the suspended Director of Immigration Amelia Komaisavai. Ms Komaisavai is believed to be on leave pending investigations into the unauthorised issuance of Fijian passports to the children of two Grace Road Church members. The ODPP says it had received Ms Komaisavai’s file, who is implicated with a “few others”. “The evidence was reviewed, and the ODPP has concluded the analysis,” the ODPP told this newspaper. “The file will be returned to police in due course with a summary of our recommendations.”
Father slams FNPF policy A concerned father and husband claims the Fiji National Provident Fund’s medical withdrawal policy discriminates against women and mothers. Rupeni Vatubuli had requested FNPF assistance when his wife underwent an emergency caesarean section at a private hospital but his request was declined. “I applied for a medical withdrawal from my FNPF general account after my wife was rushed to an emergency C-section at Oceania Hospital two weeks ago, due to dangerously high blood pressure,” Mr Vatubuli said. The procedure, the doctors suggested, was the only safe option for both mother and child. Mr Vatubuli claimed the staff and manager at the FNPF Plaza in Suva had told him the operation was “not covered through our policy, only Colonial War
Memorial Hospital is covered through FNPF”. “I was shocked and disappointed when informed that maternity cases were not covered under the fund’s medical withdrawal scheme. “This is my own FNPF general account savings. “This is discrimination towards women and mothers. “They cannot get the best healthcare from a private hospital because FNPF doesn’t cover it.” He said the irony is that CWMH itself often transfer caesarean patients to Oceania for surgery. “I chose Oceania Hospital because I wanted the best care for my wife and daughter.” In response to queries about coverage and the concerns raised, FNPF said medical withdrawal is “designed to ensure members receive support for urgent, medically necessary treatments”.
11
Jobs exist, Fijians ‘choose not to work’ Employment, Productivity and Workplace Relations Minister Agni Deo Singh says many Fijians choose not to work despite jobs being readily available nationwide. Mr Singh told the Pacific Polytech graduation ceremony earlier this week that unemployment in Fiji was not due to lack of opportunities, but a lack of effort and commitment from jobseekers. “If anybody in this country says they don’t have a job or they’re unemployed, it’s not because there are no jobs, it’s because they are not making an effort to find a job,” he said. Mr Singh said employers regularly complained about workers failing to turn up to work, especially on Mondays, and this affected productivity and delayed projects. He said this poor work ethic was one of the reasons Fiji continued to recruit workers from overseas, including the Philippines and Bangladesh. “Why are we getting people from other countries? Because our people are not coming to work,” Mr Singh said. He said the Government had strengthened worker protections by increasing the minimum wage to $5 an hour, reinstating wages councils and ensuring employees received their lawful benefits. “But as workers, we also have a duty. “If you are paid to work eight hours, then you must work eight hours.” The minister said the labour shortage had worsened as skilled workers migrated overseas, particularly to Australia and New Zealand, making local skills training critical. At yesterday’s ceremony, 414 students graduated, taking to 1432 the number of Pacific Polytech graduates this year.
Mr Singh praised the institution for expanding technical and vocational training nationwide, but reminded graduates that qualifications must be matched with discipline, commitment and strong work ethics. Fijian workers under the Pacific Australia
Labour Mobility (PALM) scheme were not involved in recent drug-related incidents in Australia, says Minister for Employment, Productivity and Workplace Relations Agni Deo Singh. “Let me make it clear that the recent incident where some Fijians were involved in drugs and other illegal activities does not involve any farm worker,” he said. He said those involved had either travelled to Australia on different visa arrangements or were born there. Mr Singh said the ministry worked closely with Australian unions, the Australian Council of Trade Unions and relevant government departments to ensure Fijian workers met legal requirements and were treated fairly. He says most PALM workers are law-abiding and continue to represent Fiji positively overseas. Fiji currently has about 4000 workers employed in Australia under the PALM scheme and about 1000 in New Zealand.
12
SATURDAY, DECEMBER 27, 2025
Yunus govt setting horrific precedent of burning minorities alive, says Hasina Bangladesh’s deposed Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Thursday lashed out at the interim government led by Muhammad Yunus, accusing it of perpetrating “unspeakable atrocities” against non-Muslims. The 78-year-old Awami League leader also said that the current ruling group, which had “seized power illegally”, was setting “horrific precedents such as burning religious minorities to death”, in an apparent reference to the lynching of a Hindu man in Bangladesh last week. In her message on the occasion of Christmas, Hasina accused the Yunus
government of interfering with the freedom of people of all religions and communities to practice their own faiths. “In particular, it is perpetrating unspeakable atrocities against non-Muslims. It has even set horrific precedents such as burning religious minorities to death. I firmly believe that the people of Bangladesh will not allow this dark time to continue any longer,” she said. The Hindu population in Bangladesh has been affected by a series of incidents against minority communities in the country after the ouster of the Hasina government in August last year.
China aided Pakistan with intel and information warfare during Op Sindoor, used it as ‘pressure valve’ against India US Defense Department-linked assessments have offered a sharper picture of how China and Pakistan are increasingly working in tandem to pressure India through coordinated grey zone operations, a strategy designed to inflict sustained damage without triggering an open war. The findings, as accessed by CNN-News18, point to Operation Sindoor as a key test case of this evolving playbook. According to the assessment cited by CNNNews18, Pakistan acted as the visible and expendable front during Operation Sindoor, executing kinetic actions and proxy pressure, while China stayed firmly in the shadows. Beijing is believed to have shaped the battlespace through intelligence support, cyber activity, electronic surveillance and information warfare, stopping well short of direct military involvement. Chinese satellite coverage and electronic inputs reportedly enhanced Pakistan’s situational awareness, improving targeting and coordination without the presence of the People’s Liberation Army on the ground.
A defining feature of China’s role was plausible deniability. While Pakistan absorbed diplomatic heat and international scrutiny as the immediate aggressor, China focused on amplifying Islamabad’s narrative through controlled diplomatic messaging and calibrated online campaigns. These efforts were aimed at muddying attribution, questioning Indian claims, and slowing any global alignment in India’s favour. US officials quoted by CNNNews18 assess this as a deliberate attempt by Beijing to probe India’s escalation thresholds while keeping its own fingerprints indirect. The assessment makes it clear that India is now viewed by Chinese military planners as a long-term sovereignty and strategic challenge, even though Beijing remains heavily focused on the US-Taiwan theatre. India, the report notes, is increasingly being shaped as a future containment target, particularly across the Himalayan frontier and in the Indian Ocean Region, where China seeks to blunt New Delhi’s strategic rise.
SOUTH ASIA
Another Hindu lynched as Zia’s son returns to Bangladesh after 17 yrs Continued from Page 1... The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), meanwhile, seized on the incident to attack West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. “Another Hindu has been lynched in Bangladesh. No wonder Mamata Banerjee opposes the CAA, which gives citizenship to Hindus who face persecution in Bangladesh, and also opposes the SIR, which would remove her Bangladeshi and Rohingya vote bank," the West Bengal BJP posted on X. According to the Dhaka Tribune, the incident occurred around 11 pm at the Hossaindanga Old Market area when locals allegedly assaulted Mondal after accusations of extortion. Pangsha Model police station officer-in-charge Sheikh Moinul Islam confirmed the death, stating that the body had been recovered and sent for autopsy. The media report quoting the police and locals claimed Mondal headed a local criminal outfit known as “Samrat Bahini” and was named in multiple cases, including murder. He had allegedly fled to India during the Awami League regime and returned recently. The killing comes just days after another brutal lynching of Dipu Chandra Das, a Hindu factory worker in Mymensingh, who was beaten to death over an alleged blasphemy accusation, further fuelling fears among minority communities. The incidents are unfolding against the backdrop of widespread protests and political instability following the killing of Sharif Osman Hadi, a prominent figure of last year’s mass agitation that led to the fall of the Hasina government. Hadi’s death has also triggered renewed diplomatic strain between India and Bangladesh. India on Tuesday sought a thorough and transparent investigation into Hadi’s killing, rejecting unsubstantiated allegations of an
Indian hand in the incidents that have stoked anti-India sentiment in Bangladesh. New Delhi has repeatedly flagged concerns over attacks on minorities, particularly Hindus, under the interim government led by Muhammad Yunus. In another development, the Bangladesh police announced a reward for information on attackers who had set on fire a Hindu-owned house near the southeastern port city of Chattogram. According to reports, unidentified miscreants set the home on fire on Tuesday night, but the residents managed to come out of the house unharmed. Amid this tense atmosphere, BNP leader Tarique Rahman returned to Dhaka on Thursday to a rousing reception by party supporters, a development expected to energise the party ahead of the February 12 parliamentary elections. Rahman had left Bangladesh after the Awami League’s landslide victory in the 2008 polls, citing threats to his safety and alleging political persecution. During Sheikh Hasina’s tenure, Rahman was convicted in multiple cases, including corruption, money laundering and involvement in grenade attacks. Despite this, he has emerged as a leading contender for the PM’s post, even as Islamist party Jamaat-e-Islami seeks to mount a strong challenge to the BNP.
SATURDAY, DECEMBER 27, 2025
13
14
SATURDAY, DECEMBER 27, 2025
PUNJAB
Key accused in Ludhiana industrialist SP Oswal's digital arrest case nabbed The Directorate of Enforcement (ED) has arrested Rumi Kalita, the key accused in the digital arrest case of well-known industrialist SP Oswal of Ludhiana.She was nabbed after the agency had conducted searches on December 22 at 11 locations across Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, Gujarat and Assam under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002, in connection with the case.Various incriminating documents and digital devices were seized during the search proceedings. Soon after the searches, Rumi Kalita was arrested under provisions of the PMLA on December 23 and her transit remand was allowed by the Chief Judicial Magistrate's court, Kamrup, Guwahati, for four days. Subsequently, she was produced before the special PMLA court in Jalandhar, which granted the ED custody of 10 days up to January 2 of the accused. Searches were also conducted on January 31, 2025, in the case, which resulted in the seizure of incriminating documents. The ED had initiated investigation in the matter on the basis of the FIR registered by the cyber crime police station, Ludhiana, under various provisions of the BNSS, 2023. Subsequently, nine
more FIRs registered by various police authorities regarding cybercrime/digital arrest related to the same group of criminals, were also taken up in the investigation. Investigations revealed that during the digital arrest of Oswal, the fraudsters, impersonating as officers of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and using forged official and judicial documents, forced him to transfer Rs 7 crore in various accounts, out of which Rs 5.24 crore were recovered from the accounts and were transferred back. The remaining funds were transferred to various mule accounts, maintained in the name of various entities and persons being labourers/delivery boys, which were either further diverted or withdrawn in cash immediately. It was also found during the investigation that the amounts cheated from victims were immediately diverted by group of persons in various mule accounts, and credentials of those accounts were being reportedly used by Rumi Kalita for certain percentage of the cheated money to be given to her as her share. Various incriminating evidences gathered during the search showed that she was deeply involved in the diversion and layering of the proceeds of crime, the ED sources said.
Read more news online or view Digital Copy of Newspaper at:
www.TheAsianStar.com
CM approves Rs 10L/family free health plan, launch on Jan 15 Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Thursday approved the launch of the Mukh Mantri Sehat Bima Yojana from January 15, 2026, thus ensuring cashless treatment worth Rs 10 lakh for every family in the state. During a meeting with the Health Department, he said the Mukh Mantri Sehat Bima Yojana had been aimed at providing universal healthcare to the people. “This is a step towards providing universal healthcare and ensuring that people get cashless treatment worth Rs 10 lakh. Punjab will be the first state in the country where every family will be entitled to the cashless treatment of up to Rs 10 lakh,” said the Chief Minister. Mann said the flagship initiative would provide financial protection and quality healthcare to all Punjabis. “This scheme is a step towards universal health coverage. Each enrolled family will be entitled for cashless medical treatment
of up to Rs 10 lakh per year,” he added. He said, “This scheme will cover critical care, surgeries and life-saving treatment at a wide network of empanelled government and private hospitals in
Punjab and Chandigarh.” Mann said all expenses like hospitalisation costs, surgeries and medical procedures, ICU and critical care services, diagnostics, medicines, and consumables as per approved packages, pre-and post-hospitalisation expenses and others would be covered under the Mukh Mantri Sehat Bima Yojana.
Rs 3 cr transactions put on hold, cops zero in on three accused
In a cyber fraud case involving retired Inspector General Amar Singh Chahal, the police have managed to stop the transaction of Rs 3 crore of the total Rs 8.10 crore allegedly siphoned off by freezing around 25 bank accounts linked to the accused. The police have also zeroed in on three accused operating from Maharashtra.Chahal had allegedly shot himself on December 22 after realising that he had been duped. Initial probe revealed that the retired officer did not report the matter to the police before taking the extreme step. So far, high-level probe team has identified three persons, all of whom are said to be in Maharashtra. It has emerged that the fraudsters transferred money from the former IG’s bank into multiple accounts. After analysing the banking trails and conducting technical inspections, the Patiala police coordinated with the banks concerned to freeze the amount. The police have found clues suggesting the involvement of at least 10 persons in the entire cycle of cyber fraud. Investigators are also probing whether the suspects were living under fake identities or using
other methods to evade detection. Chahal had claimed that he was duped by Rajat Verma, who posed as a managing director and CEO of a private bank. Expressing shock over the incident, former ADGP Gurinder Singh Dhillon said, “It is very sad and extremely distressing.
When a friend, brother or colleague — someone you have worked with — goes through such a situation. I thank the Almighty for saving Chahal and giving him a new lease of life.” Doctors said Chahal had multiple rib fractures and a large tear in the left lung, with the bullet passing dangerously close to the heart. A medical bulletin issued on Wednesday said the patient was stable, off ventilator support and on a soft diet. The police may record his statement at the hospital on Sunday.
Rohtak parlour owner stabbed to death by brother over live-in NOW ORDER ONLINE:
Monday-Friday - 12:00pm - 9:30pm & Saturday-Sunday - 12:00pm - 10:00pm
8140 128 St. #335 Payal Business Centre
604.593.3813
7320 King George Blvd #107
Across from Newton Police Station
604.503.3833
A 30-year-old Rohtak beauty parlour owner was stabbed to death allegedly by her brother on Thursday morning as he was learnt to be unhappy over her decision to live with another man without a formal marriage after her divorce. The accused, Jawala Prasad, reportedly believed that the relationship had brought dishonour to the family and allegedly attacked his sister with a sharp weapon at her workplace near the Mata Darwaja Chowk area in Rohtak. He fled the scene after committing the crime, but the police arrested him within a few hours. The victim, Maya, operated the parlour from a rented premises and was residing in Kabir Colony. She had married Raman, a resident of the Khokhrakot area, in 2010. Following a strained relationship, the couple divorced in August this year. After the separation, Maya started living with the other man at her Kabir Colony residence. Maya’s father Mahender Singh told the police that his son
Jawala was unhappy with the divorce and objected to his sister’s decision to live with another man without marrying him. Mahender said Jawala often quarrelled with Maya and even advised other family members to sever ties with her, and that he had previously threatened to kill her. According to information, Jawala visited Maya’s parlour in the morning and allegedly attacked her on the neck her with a knife. Maya collapsed on the floor and died on the spot due to the deep wound, while the accused fled the scene. When police personnel reached the scene after being informed of the crime, they found the victim lying in a pool of blood. “Jawala Prasad was later arrested after a few hours. Based on his father’s complaint, a case has been registered against him on the charges of murder and house trespass with the intent to commit an offence. Further investigation is underway,” said a spokesperson of the Rohtak district police.
SATURDAY, DECEMBER 27, 2025
INDIA
15
What are kamikaze drones which the Indian Army is purchasing and why are they extremely dangerous? The Indian Army has decided to multiply its strength, and for that, it is soon going to buy 850 dangerous Kamikaze (suicide) drones, say reports. This entire deal will be worth approximately 2000 crore rupees. These drones will be used not only by the Army but also by the Special Forces of the Indian Air Force and Indian Navy. After Operation Sindoor, the army has learned that future wars will be won with drones. In the action taken after the Pahalgam attack, these drones crippled the enemy. Now, every infantry battalion will have a special ‘Ashni Platoon’ that will operate these drones. The Indian Army is taking its firepower to the next level. According to an ANI report, the army is in the final stages of acquiring 850 Kamikaze drones. These are also called loitering munitions. These are drones that hover in the air for a long time. And as soon as the target is spotted, they
crash into it and self-destruct. This proposal may be passed in the Defence Acquisition Council (DAC) meeting this month. It will be purchased under a fast-track process. Importantly, these drones and their launchers will be procured from indigenous sources, with India now becoming self-reliant in terms of weapons. The army has taken this decision based on the lessons learned from ‘Operation Sindoor’. In retaliation for the Pahalgam terrorist attack, India conducted an operation inside Pakistan. In that operation, the Indian Army made extensive use of drones. On the very first day of the operation, India destroyed 7 out of 9 terrorist hideouts across the LoC and inside Pakistan. Later, these drones wreaked havoc on the Pakistani Army as it came to rescue the terrorists. They suffered heavy losses in that attack and much of their infrastructure was destroyed.
CBI books ex-ED officer, banker brother in disproportionate assets case CBI has booked Vishal Deep, former Assistant Director of the Enforcement Directorate (ED), Shimla, and his brother Vikas Deep, a senior manager with Punjab National Bank (PNB), New Delhi, for allegedly amassing over ₹93.24 lakh -more than 231 per cent of the former public servant’s known sources of income -- within a period of 10 months in 2024. The FIR, registered on December 23, 2025, at the CBI Anti-Corruption Branch (ACB), Chandigarh, follows a preliminary enquiry which prima facie found that Vishal intentionally amassed assets grossly disproportionate to his lawful income with active abetment by his banker brother. Both accused hail from Bhiwani in Haryana and share the same residential address in Durga Colony.
The case has been registered under Sections 12 read with 13(2) and 13(1)(b) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988, for criminal misconduct by a public servant and abetment thereof. The FIR was lodged on the basis of a written complaint by CBI Inspector Arun Ahlawat after scrutiny of financial records, bank accounts and other douments gathered from multiple agencies. CBI officials said the preliminary enquiry was initiated as an offshoot of earlier trap cases registered in 2024, during which large amounts of unaccounted cash and incriminating material were recovered. Subsequent analysis revealed that during the check period -- from March 1, 2024, to December 31, 2024 -- the accused ED officer’s assets and expenditure far exceeded his known legal income.
Art 370 abrogation decisive step in country’s unity Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday said the BJP was proud its government got the opportunity to “tear down the wall of Article 370”, terming it a “decisive step” in strengthening India’s unity. Addressing a public gathering after inaugurating the Rashtra Prerna Sthal in Lucknow on the 101st birth anniversary of former PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee, he said “the Constitution is now fully implemented in Jammu and Kashmir”, something that had remained a challenge for decades after Independence. Modi said it was Dr Syama Prasad Mookerjee who had firmly opposed the concept of “two constitutions, two flags and two prime ministers” in the country. He asserted
that the special constitutional arrangement in Jammu and Kashmir had undermined national integrity for years. “The BJP is proud that our government got the opportunity to bring down the wall of Article 370. Today, the Constitution of India is fully implemented in Jammu and Kashmir,” the PM said. The remarks came as Modi paid tribute to Dr Mookerjee, Pt Deendayal Upadhyaya and Atal Bihari Vajpayee, whose statues have been installed at the newly inaugurated Rashtra Prerna Sthal, envisioned as a national memorial and inspiration site. He said the complex symbolises the ideals of self-respect, unity and service that have guided India’s national journey.
BEST SERVICE AND MORTGAGE RATES
Call us for Lowest Mortgage Rates on Your Mortgage Renewals and New Mortgages. We have helped thousands of our clients. We have a big pool of Private Mortgages to help you.
Private Mortgage Residential / Re-finance Self Employed Construction Mortgage
Plea in SC against relief to Sengar in 2017 Unnao rape case A petition has been filed in the Supreme Court challenging the Delhi High Court’s order for suspension of sentence and grant of bail to expelled BJP leader Kuldeep Singh Sengar in the 2017 Unnao rape case, with the judicial relief having triggered a massive uproar. Filed by advocates Anjale Patel and Pooja Shilpkar, the petition urged the top court to stay the December 23 high court order, contending it was passed without considering that the trial court had said that Sengar must remain in jail for the rest of his natural life. The CBI has also said that it would challenge before the Supreme Court the suspension of Sengar’s life sentence and the bail granted to him. The petitioners claimed the high court had committed a “grave error in law as well as on facts in suspension of the sentence and granting bail to Sengar despite his serious criminal antecedents
and his established involvement in the heinous offences of rape”. “The high court failed to appreciate the material evidence relied upon by the prosecution, which clearly demonstrates the barbarity and brutality of the accused, coupled with his demonstrated muscle power, financial influence and criminal propensity as evidenced from the fact that even while the victim's father was under judicial custody, the accused orchestrated and executed his murder to silence the family and frustrate the due course of justice," they submitted. Sengar's sentence has been suspended by the high court till the pendency of his appeal challenging his December 2019 conviction and sentencing by the trial court. He will, however, remain in jail as he is also serving 10-year imprisonment in the custodial death case of the victim's father and has not been granted bail in that case.
WESTWIDE MORTGAGE CORP. #204 8334 128th Street, Surrey, B.C. V3W 4G2
Ajitabh Gandhi Mortgage Consultant
778 707 1028 Email: westwidemortgage@gmail.com
16
SATURDAY, DECEMBER 27, 2025