Jaspal Atwal

Jaspal Singh Atwal (born 1955) is an Indo-Canadian businessman convicted of attempted murder for his role in the 1986 attempt to assassinate Punjab minister Malkiat Singh Sidhu. He left for Canada at a young age and claimed to study at British Columbia Institute of Technology. He visited India once in the past few years, with a Facebook post of him visiting the Taj Mahal. The attack left Dosanjh severely injured with 80 stitches and a broken hand. Sidhu was struck twice and survived the shooting, however, he was assassinated in 1991 five years later at his home. He was seen photographed with Sophie Grégoire Trudeau and Infrastructure Minister Amarjeet Sohi at an event in Mumbai and was invited to the event by Randeep Sarai. Atwal's invitation was rescinded the next day and Trudeau stated that he should have never been invited. He was removed from India's travel blacklist several months ago, while the Indian government stated that he wasn't a security threat. Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer accused Trudeau of "wining and dining" with an attempted murderer in a Thursday tweet. On 8 March 2018, he apologized for the "embarrassment" he caused when he attended the event and told reporters that he took full responsibility for his past actions. A new committee of reporters and senators delivered its first classified report regarding the affair with 18 findings and 6 recommendations concerning allegations of foreign interference in Canadian political affairs.

Death threats against a British Columbia host On 25 April 2018, Atwal was arrested at his home and charged for making threats to a local British Columbia host. According to documents, he faces charges for "uttering threats to cause death or bodily harm".

Involvement in Canadian politics In 2012, Atwal was invited to a budget speech of 35th Premier of British Columbia Christy Clark as a guest. Clark's reaction was similar to Wai Young when she received help from Ripudaman Singh Malik, who was acquitted in the Air India Flight 182 bombing. After the controversy, liberal party director Tariq Ghuman resigned. In a 14 January 2013 post on Facebook, Atwal was seen in a photo with a young Justin Trudeau. Official records showed that he donated $500 to the Liberal Party on 9 April 2011.