Amritsar:
Visiting Canadian minister Jason Kenny was on Friday shown black flags by a group of people who are waiting for their immigration clearance to Canada.
Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism Minister Kenny, who was on a one-day visit to this Sikh holy city, was shown black flags by the group called Canadian Back-loggers Pre-2008 Association near the Golden Temple complex.
Police officials said the protestors, holding black flags, numbered over 100. "They were not allowed to come near the Canadian minister as he arrived to visit the Golden Temple," a police officer said.
Association leader Jagmander Singh said thousands of people were awaiting immigration clearance by the Canadian authorities for the last few years. Over 300,000 immigration applications, including over 65,000 from Punjab alone, were pending with the Canadian government, he added.
Thousands of people of Punjab origin are settled in various parts of Canada. Some of them have even become Members of Parliament and federal and provincial ministers there in the last few years.
Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper had visited Chandigarh and Punjab November last year. He had visited Takht Keshgarh Sahib at Anandpur Sahib, the second most holy Sikh shrine after the Golden Temple here.