Guru Nanak Jahaz (Komagata Maru) Place

Artist Jag Nagra’s designs for the Guru Nanak Jahaz (Komagata Maru) Place signage contain layers of iconography and feature both names of the ship: Komagata Maru in English and Guru Nanak Jahaz in Gurmukhi. Both designs are based on 2 well-known archival photographs.

Symbolism in the first sign

In the first sign, 19 doves represent the 19 lives lost. The pattern of ocean waves imitates the pattern of dupatta fabric seen in unraveled turbans. The reflection of the setting red sun is coloured to represent the bloodshed experienced as part of the tragedy. 

Mourning passengers in the second sign 

The second sign showcases 13 passengers with their eyes closed, mourning the tragedy. The passengers are crowded together to represent the poor living conditions on board the ship. Among the crowd are 2 women, often forgotten in the tragedy’s retelling. 

Using colours and typography

The use of bright and sacred religious colours not only reflects South Asian culture, but also emphasizes the diversity of those onboard. The green pays homage to Muslim passengers, the navy-blue represents those who were Sikh, and the saffron symbolizes those who were Hindu. Through use of colour, artist Jag Nagra responds to the prejudiced, racist, and demeaning historical news articles which labeled all passengers as Hindu, erasing the diversity amongst the passengers.

Additionally, the text is written in newsprint typeface to underscore the important role print media had in shaping public narratives about the passengers. And finally, Guru Nanak Jahaz, which the ship was renamed, is prominently written in Gurmukhi alongside the tragedy’s 1914 date.

Signage for Guru Nanak Jahaz (Komagata Maru) Place were created by Jagandeep (Jag) Kaur Nagra, a queer, Punjabi, visual artist passionate about art accessibility, community development, and combatting LGBTQ+ stigma in the South Asian community. 

Artist statement

Working on this piece has been an emotional journey: from the beginning when I joined the City of Vancouver’s committee for Historical Discrimination Against People of South Asian Canadian Descent, to the secondary street naming advisory committee, and now having been given the opportunity to create the artwork proposal. The responsibility placed on the artist to create artwork that commemorates the tragedy that unfolded in Vancouver harbour is immense, and not one that I’ve taken lightly. 

The phrasing Komagata Maru “incident” has minimized what our ancestors went through over their 6 gruelling months aboard the ship. While it may be a short blip in historical writings, for our people, it has had lasting effects. The racism, the lack of regard for human life. It’s not an incident, it’s a tragedy in every sense of the word. 

Through this series of artworks, I’ve put thought into every single element and colour choice. Every line I drew felt heavy as I listened to interviews, podcasts, and read articles about the tragedy while I created. The voices of scholars, community members, and descendants are in every line, in every shape, and every colour.

Guru Nanak Jahaz

In 1914, Gurdit Singh, a Sikh businessman and community leader chartered a Japanese steamship from Hong Kong named the Komagata Maru. The ship was renamed Guru Nanak Jahaz following an Ardaas (prayer service) at a Gurdwara (place of learning and worship) in Hong Kong. 

When word spread that the steamship was coming to Canada, it was incorrectly referred to as the Komagata Maru by western media and the Canadian government.

Information icon Guru Nanak was the first of the 10 Sikh gurus and holds spiritual value for those practicing Sikhism. Jahaz means ‘ship’ in Punjabi.

The passengers

On April 4, 1914, the Guru Nanak Jahaz left Hong Kong carrying 376 passengers — approximately 340 Sikh, 24 Muslim, and 12 Hindu passengers — including 2 women and 5 children, most originating from Punjab, British India. The ship began its 2-month journey via Shanghai and Yokohama to Vancouver's Burrard Inlet. The passengers, all British subjects, were traveling across the globe, like many others, in search of a better life. They hoped to find work in Canada and support their families back home. 

Denied entry in Vancouver

On May 23, 1914, the ship arrived in Vancouver and anchored in Burrard Inlet. Despite possessing valid travel documents and complying with a large discriminatory $200 head tax, only 20 passengers were allowed to disembark as they had previously lived in Canada. The remaining 356 passengers were denied entry and were kept on board the ship, which was anchored in the harbor. The Canadian government argued that the passengers had not arrived by a continuous journey.

The Continuous Journey regulation

The Canadian government’s Continuous Journey regulation required immigrants to make a direct journey from their country of origin without stopping or disembarking at any other port along the way. This policy specifically targeted immigrants from India who, at the time, had no way to get to Canada in 1 continuous ship voyage. This regulation was passed within the context of rising anti-Asian and anti-“Hindoo” racism, antisemitism, increasing racism towards Black Canadians, and ongoing anti-Indigenous racism (for example, Gradual Civilization Act, 1857). 

Legal rulings and forced return

Henry Herbert Stevens who was a Vancouver City Alderman (Councillor) until 1911, before becoming Member of Parliament for Greater Vancouver in 1912, publicly supported the Continuous Journey regulation. In a pamphlet titled, “Oriental Problem,” he named South Asian community leaders as being dangerous, exploitative, and ignorant. Stevens was strongly opposed to immigration from India to Canada, calling South Asians undesirables, and opposing their right to be joined by their families. 

On July 6, 1914, the British Columbia Court of Appeal ruled in favour of the Government of Canada after finding no decision in Canadian or British law that gave the passengers a right of entry. All but approximately 20 of the passengers were ordered to return to India.

Tragic outcome in India

After having been anchored in Vancouver’s Burrard Inlet with passengers detained on board for 62 days, the Guru Nanak Jahaz was escorted out of the harbor by the Canadian military on July 23, 1914. Upon the ship's arrival to the Indian port of Budge Budge near Kolkata, India on September 29, 1914, 19 passengers were shot and killed, while many others were imprisoned or placed under house arrest by British Indian police and troops as they were labeled political agitators.

The Guru Nanak Jahaz tragedy remains a significant moment in Canadian history, underscoring the discriminatory immigration policies of the time and the hardships faced by immigrants, particularly those from Asia.

Council’s May 2020 report on the commemoration of the Guru Nanak Jahaz (Komagata Maru) PDF file (1.7 MB) delves deeply into our 1914 response to the arrival of the ship. It provides historical context, the viewpoint of a community historian, photos, and detailed historical information.  

Neglect of food requests

Over their 62-day isolation in Burrard Inlet, passengers often went 3 to 4 days without food and water. Their representatives wrote repeated letters to the Vancouver Mayor, requesting food, water, and medical aid in response to the deteriorating living conditions on the ship. We did not respond to these letters, nor did we seek support from senior government to provide these provisions.

Exclusion of South Asians Dominion Hall public meeting

Vancouver Mayor Baxter organized a public meeting held at a community hall referred to as Dominion Hall. South Asians were refused entry and some of those wishing to attend were removed forcibly by police. 

Quote from Vancouver Mayor Baxtor, Vancouver Sun, June 23, 1914

“We have here in the harbor seeking admittance a boat load of undesirables trying to force their way in defiance of our laws, and who will not stop at taking action in the courts to force their presence upon us. There is no room for them here. Work is not to be had even for our citizens. What I would like to see is that orders be issued for a couple of tugboats to hitch on to the Komagata Maru and haul her with her load of undesirables out to sea. We do not want this thing to get into the courts…. By holding this meeting we desire to show the government [in] Ottawa in a quiet way that we as citizens are behind them in any action that may be taken in ridding the country of these East Indians. The Hindu is not a desirable citizen, and when I say that I am backed up by public opinion.”

Motion passed to exclude Hindus and other Asiatic races

Council unanimously passed a motion which stated that: 

“...whereas it is known that if these Hindus succeed in landing it is the plan of promoters   of the scheme to bring thousands of their compatriots into this country. And whereas the presence of these people would prove a serious menace to our civilization, both economically and socially, besides intensifying the present unsatisfactory labor condition. This Council, therefore, desires to place itself on record as unalterably opposed to the admittance of Hindus and other Asiatic races into this country, and that his worshiped the Mayor, be authorized to send a telegram to Premier Sir Robert Borden conveying this expression of the Council.” 

Use of force during deportation

After the Board of Appeal decision of July 6, the passengers accepted the verdict and agreed to leave only after adequate provisions (food and water) for their long return journey were provided. In the early morning on July 19, 1914, a ship with 35 deputized officers and 125 City police officers, all armed, approached the Guru Nanak Jahaz with the intention of forcing her out of the harbour as per the deportation order. The passengers were awake and resisted as they did not receive food and water for their long journey home and a battle commenced. Vancouver Police enforced the federal deportation order without objection from Mayor Baxter and City Aldermen (Councillors). 

Profiling and mass interrogations

Before, during, and after the incident, Vancouver Police were able to detain any South Asians they deemed suspicious and conduct mass interrogations and searches against the local South Asian population in Vancouver. 

Support from local South Asian communities

Despite these widespread racist sentiments and discriminatory setbacks, the local South Asian communities living in Vancouver advocated for the passengers and raised funds to pay for provisions and legal efforts in support of the passengers.

Guru Nanak Jahaz (Komagata Maru) Day of Remembrance - signed proclamation PDF file (510 KB)

On June 10, 2020, Mayor and Council unanimously agreed to recognize the injustices of the Guru Nanak Jahaz tragedy. 

This began a process which resulted in:

• Our formal apology on May 18, 2021, for historical discrimination toward the 376 passengers aboard the Guru Nanak Jahaz from British India in 1914. 
• The declaration of May 23 as Guru Nanak Jahaz (Komagata Maru) Remembrance Day in Vancouver.
• The decision that Canada Place be given the secondary, honorary street name “Guru Nanak Jahaz (Komagata Maru) Place.” 

Both initiatives, and the street naming request, were brought forward by the Descendants of the Komagata Maru Society led by their vice president and spokesperson, Raj Singh Toor.

Throughout this process, we engaged with focus groups and advisors from South Asian Canadian communities including:

• The Komagata Maru Descendants Society
• The Khalsa Diwan Society
• The Punjabi Market Collective
• The City of Vancouver’s Historical Discrimination against People of South Asian Descent Community Advisory Committee
• Artist Selection Panel including South Asian artists, various curators, and cultural workers

We express our sincere appreciation to these groups for their invaluable guidance, time, and sharing of expertise during the naming process. 

In 2008 and 2016, the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia and the Government of Canada each formally apologized for this terrible act of discrimination.

Learn more

• Review the Council Guru Nanak Jahaz (Komagata Maru) secondary street naming report PDF file (1.7 MB)
• Learn about Guru Nanak Jahaz (Komagata Maru) Remembrance Day and review our proclamation
• Review the South Asian Redress interim report PDF file (597 KB)
• Watch the Historical Discrimination against People of South Asian Descent: Addressing Racism in Vancouver video External website, opens in new tab
• Review the steps being taken to address the historical discrimination against people of South Asian Canadian descent
• Visit the Guru Nanak Jahaz (Komagata Maru) Museum located at the Khalsa Diwan Society, 8000 Ross Street, Vancouver.