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Harjit Sajjan Irks B.C. Shopkeeper By Dropping Cherry Pits Outside His Store

But community leaders were mad at the shopkeeper for "humiliating" the defence minister.

A B.C. shopkeeper thought Harjit Sajjan tossing some cherry remnants out his car window was the pits.

Shopkeeper Pamma Chauhan filmed a video of the defence minister dropping some cherry pits onto the ground outside the East Indian Meat Shop in Osoyoos, B.C.

After recording the video from inside his store, Chauhan then goes outside to confront Sajjan, and gives him an earful in Punjabi.

According to the Financial Express, the shopkeeper tells Sajjan that if it was any regular person, he would be able to let the incident go, but as a senior government official, the defence minister should know better.

Sajjan tells Chauhan that he was parked in the lot because he wanted to buy meat from his store. Chauhan responds by saying Sajjan is an educated man who can read the sign saying the shop is closed, and can see that the window shutters are down.

Following the incident, Sajjan and Chauhan reconciled at a local gurdwara— a Sikh place of worship— with members of the Punjabi Sikh community, according to the Hindustan Times.

Community members upset at shopkeeper

Several people were angry with Chauhan for "humiliating" the prominent man representing them, the Hindustan Times reports, and some even suggested boycotting his store.

Community leaders apologized to Sajjan, who said there was no need for apologies. He voiced his displeasure over Chauhan's rude behaviour, but also admitted his mistake and asked for the matter to be closed.

Indian media like the Indian Express, the Hindustan Times, and the Quint all published articles about the incident, as they regularly cover Canada's Sikh, Punjab-born defence minister.

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