Indo-Canadian man alleges racism at club

An Indo-Canadian man has alleged that he was denied entry to a graduation party in a Vancouver club purely on the basis of his skin colour.

Manjinder Gill claimed before a human rights tribunal that he and a group accompanying him were denied entry to Langley Shark Club Dec 9, 2011, after they arrived 15 minutes late for the 9 p.m. party even as Caucasians were allowed to go in in front of them, The Province newspaper of Vancouver reported Monday.

According to Gill, he and his friends were told by a bouncer at the club that the club was full even as they saw Caucasians being let in.

Gill said he was also told by the bouncer that everyone had tickets to a Christmas party in the club and that all tickets were sold out even though Caucasians entering the club showed no tickets.

Gill, his wife Manjit Gill, and their friend Sergei Rai filed three separate complaints, claiming discrimination on the basis of their race and colour, which is prohibited under the laws of Canada's British Columbia province.

Gill also said that another bouncer shoved him when he reached for his mobile phone and shouted at him to leave the property.

A member of Gill's group called police and they gave their statements one-and-a-half hours later.

The Langley Shark Club, however, denied discrimination by its staff saying Gill and his group were late and belligerent.

It also claimed that the majority of the 20 people already admitted to the graduation party were Indo-Canadian.

However, Gill told the club's lawyer Rob Toor that he filed the complaint because he felt that the incident was outrageous.

"What the Shark Club said happened that night, it's a blatant lie," Gill was quoted as telling the tribunal's chair.

"It bothered me the next morning. It was on my mind the whole night."

In reply to a question by his own lawyer, Gill said: "In this day and age, how someone can be discriminated against... if something bothers me, I'll take action on it."

As Gill had filed the complaint in June 2011, the club's lawyer Toor suggested that he and his wife took so long a time as the incident was not devastating to their lives.

Toor also said that Gill and his wife filed their complaints only to bolster Rai's complaint, which was filed in February 2012.

Both Gill and his wife denied this.