UPDATED AGAIN: Walt explains why MP Grewal has NOT resigned

On Saturday, Walt reported on the sympathetic treatment the Canuck lamestream media are giving to Raj Grewal, the once and still Member of Parliament for the Sikh-majority riding of Brampton East. See "Canuck media treat troubled Liberal MP with kid gloves", WWW 24/11/18. In a tweet to his constituents and the Liberal Party whip -- yes, Mr Grewal is a Liberal -- the rookie MP said he was going to quit to deal with "personal and medical" problems. Prime Minister Just In Trudeau expressed his sympathy and said that Mr Grewal was doing the right thing.

When pressed (lightly, no starch) for specifics of Mr Grewal's problems, fart-catchers for Mr Socks issued a statement saying that Mr Grewal had informed the PM's office that he was receiving treatment from a health professional "related to a gambling problem that led him to incur significant personal debts. Based on these circumstances, we agreed that his decision to resign as member of Parliament for Brampton East was the right one. We hope he receives the support he needs."

The prime ministerial flaks also said they were "not aware" of any investigations being carried out by the Brampton police. All they knew about, they said, was the RCMP investigation into Mr Grewal's doings in connection with Mr Dress-up's ludicrous trip to India earlier this year. It seems Mr Grewal invited along a person with whom he had had business dealings, and from whom he had received a sum of money for "professional services".

Today, Canada's Global TV News, which is probing the story with a lot more vigour than, say, the state-owned CBC, reports that although Mr Grewal said publicly that he was going to resign, he has yet to do so! Apparently there's a clear parliamentary procedure that must be followed when an MP resigns his/her seat. Notices must be given to certain officials before Elections Canada can declare the seat vacant, and Mr Grewal hasn't done the necessary.

Why (I hear you ask) has Mr Grewal not followed through on his stated intention? Walt was churlish enough to suggest that at least one more shoe would drop, sooner rather than later. Agent 3 has now put his legal mind to the matter, and draws Walt's attention to the Government of Canada website which explains the privileges and immunities of Members of Parliament. About half-way down the lengthy page, one may see the heading "Freedom from Arrest in Civil Actions".

A Canuck MP, the article explains, is not immune from arrest for a criminal offence. However, a Member may not be arrested under civil process, including for civil contempt of court. Such as? Such as failing to appear for examination as a judgment debtor, or in answer to a subpoena in a civil trial. The privilege of freedom from arrest exists from the moment of the execution of the return of the writ of election by the returning officer, and continues while the House of Commons is sitting, as it is now. It also applies 40 days before and after a session of Parliament and 40 days after a dissolution of Parliament.

In other words, if Mr Grewal resigns, rather than just promising to do so, he loses that immunity and can be immediately brought before a civil court to face whatever consequences flow from his "significant debt (and other?) problems". Of course the loss of that privilege has no bearing whatever on Mr Grewal's dragging of his Liberal feet.

UPDATE OF THE UPDATE, added 28/11/18: Somewhere below the fold [Only Editors will understand that. Ed.] CBC News is carrying a report from Canadian Press that word of Raj Grewal's gambling debts surfaced on police wiretaps in a much broader probe into other people suspected of money laundering and terrorist financing. 

A source with knowledge of the events, who requested anonymity due to the sensitivity of the matter, said the MP's debts came to the attention of the Ontario Provincial Police during an investigation of some "particularly shady guys" who might be involved in laundering drug money destined for an extremist group in the Middle East.

My innocent question: What "extremist group in the Middle East" sprang to your mind as you read that? Wouldn't it be more than strange for a Sikh to be helping with the financing of Islamic terrorists? Maybe not.