Broadcaster hands out copies of Georgia Straight at Vaisakhi parade

Vancouver's Vaisakhi parade went off without a hitch yesterday, just as it has every other year.

But this time, there was a controversy bubbling under the radar screen of many politicians in attendance.

For the first time at Vaisakhi, the City of Vancouver ordered the removal of all newspaper boxes along the parade route, even sending trucks out to scoop up some belonging to the Georgia Straight.

This was a topic of conversation among some Sikhs when I visited the Meewa Singh Room inside the Ross Street gurdwara shortly before the parade began.

One of the newspaper's supporters and contributors, Spice Radio broadcaster Gurpreet Singh, even brought copies of the Georgia Straight on his station's truck, which participated in the procession.

He said he was going to hand out copies to make a point that the city's actions were a threat to freedom of expression.

Singh is also a cofounder of Radical Desi, which is a progressive magazine focusing on issues of interest in Canada and South Asia.

Vaisakhi being Vaisakhi, there was no shortage of politicians, most dressed in Indian attire or wearing head scarves, to celebrate the founding of the Khalsa in 1699.

It was a Sikh military order created by Guru Gobind Singh to prevent ruling Moguls from forcibly converting people in Punjab to Islam.