apply for up to $2.5 million in grants and contributions funding to commemorate the Komagata Maru incident. Following further debate on May 15, 2008, Dhalla's motion was passed by the House of Commons. On May 23, 2008, the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia unanimously passed a resolution "that this Legislature apologizes for the events of May 23, 1914, when 376 passengers of the Komagata Maru, stationed off Vancouver harbour, were denied entry by Canada. The House deeply regrets that the passengers, who sought refuge in our country and our province, were turned away without benefit of the fair and impartial treatment befitting a society where people of all cultures are welcomed and accepted." On August 3, 2008, Harper appeared at the 13th annual Ghadri Babiyan Da Mela (festival) in Surrey, B.C., to issue an apology for the Komagata Maru incident. He said, in response to the House of Commons motion calling for an apology by the government, "On behalf of the government of Canada, I am officially conveying as prime minister that apology." Some members of the Sikh community were unsatisfied with the apology because they expected it to be made in Parliament. Secretary of State Jason Kenney said: "The apology has been given and it won't be repeated". The British Columbia Regiment (Duke of Connaught's Own), which was involved in the expulsion of the Komagata Maru, was commanded by a Sikh, Harjit Sajjan, from 2011 until 2014. He later became Minister of National Defence. On May 18, 2016, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau gave a formal "full apology" for the incident in the House of Commons. This formal apology came about due to lobbying from the Indo-Canadian community, such as the work done by The Descendants of the Komagata Maru Society. On May 18, 2021, due to lobbying efforts of Raj Singh Toor, Vancouver City Council said that they "sincerely apologize for the role the City played in the incident, especially supporting laws that prevented passengers from disembarking". Also due to lobbying efforts of Toor, New Westminster City Council acknowledged on September 27, 2021, that the city's "...formal support of discriminatory, racist and exclusionary legislation contributed to the plight of the passengers of the Komagata Maru, both in Canadian waters and upon their return to India." Consequently, "The City of New Westminster formally apologizes to the South Asian community and the descendants of the survivors of the Komagata Maru for