Brampton Roundup: Former MP Raj Grewal Sued Over Gurdwara-Backed Loans, Kimari Punjabi Dating App Launches, Garba Festival Draws Crowds

Brampton, Ontario, Canada's fastest-growing South Asian city and home to one of the world's largest concentrations of Punjabi Sikh communities outside India, has been generating headlines across the spectrum of civic, spiritual, and cultural life. A major legal case involving former member of Parliament Raj Grewal has escalated, a new Punjabi Sikh-focused technology startup has launched a dating application from the city, and the community's festival calendar continues with the annual Garba celebration drawing participants from across the Greater Toronto Area.

Former MP Raj Grewal Sued After $15M in Loans Allegedly Secured Using GTA Gurdwaras as Collateral

Former member of Parliament Raj Grewal is facing a lawsuit from lenders who allege that he borrowed $15 million using two GTA Gurdwara Sikh temples as collateral while reportedly drowning in personal debt, as reported by The Pointer in its courts coverage. The lawsuit is a significant escalation in the legal troubles that have followed Grewal, who represented the Brampton East riding before his resignation from Parliament in 2018 amid disclosures about his gambling addiction and associated financial difficulties. The alleged use of Gurdwara properties as security for personal loans raises deeply troubling questions about the management of community religious institutions and their assets. Gurdwaras in the GTA are community-owned facilities funded by sangat donations and held in trust for the congregation. Using such properties as personal collateral without full community consent would represent a serious breach of fiduciary duty to the Sikh congregation. Grewal's earlier legal and personal difficulties had already attracted considerable attention in Brampton, where the Punjabi-Sikh community is a dominant cultural and demographic force. The lawsuit by lenders seeking recovery of the $15 million compounds the reputational and legal pressures on Grewal and has restarted conversations about governance standards and financial transparency in community-owned Gurdwara institutions across the Greater Toronto Area. [2]

Kimari, a Punjabi Sikh Dating App, Launches in Brampton on September 14, 2026

Kimari, a new dating application specifically designed for the Punjabi Sikh community, launched in Brampton on September 14, 2026, as announced through a press release on the 24-7PressRelease platform. The service, as described in the launch announcement, combines community-based introductions with modern technology to serve a community that has long relied on traditional matchmaking through family networks, regional Punjabi associations, and Gurdwara-connected introductions. Dating applications designed specifically for South Asian communities have proliferated in recent years as first-generation and second-generation South Asian immigrants in North America seek partners who share cultural, linguistic, and religious backgrounds while also navigating the expectations and norms of their Western host societies. Kimari represents a Brampton-centric launch, recognising the city's status as the global capital of diaspora Punjabi-Sikh culture outside of Punjab. The Punjabi-speaking population in Brampton and neighbouring Mississauga runs into the hundreds of thousands, creating a large local user base for a culturally specific platform. The launch has attracted attention from Punjabi community media and from younger members of the Sikh community in the GTA who are actively exploring how technology can help them find compatible partners without fully surrendering the community-connectedness that characterises traditional Punjabi matchmaking. [4]

Brampton Garba Celebration: Free Music and Dancing at September 25 Event

Brampton's South Asian community came together for the Garba celebration on September 25, 2026, with free music and dancing opening the event to residents from across the city and the Greater Toronto Area, as covered by The Bramptonist. Garba, the circular folk dance tradition originating from Gujarat and traditionally performed during the nine nights of Navratri, has become one of the most widely celebrated South Asian cultural events in Brampton as the city's Gujarati community has grown significantly alongside its Punjabi Sikh majority. Brampton Garba events draw participants from both the Gujarati community, for whom Garba is a cultural and religious tradition tied to the worship of Goddess Durga, and from broader South Asian and non-South Asian communities who participate in the colourful, energetic performances as part of a shared multicultural celebration. The provision of free entry at the Brampton Garba event reflects an intentional effort to make the celebration accessible to all Brampton residents regardless of economic background, contributing to the festival's role as a community unifying moment. Organisers coordinating with the city of Brampton ensured that music, lighting, and performance spaces were set up to accommodate large crowds in a safe and celebratory environment, reinforcing the city's reputation as one of the most vibrant South Asian cultural hubs in the world outside of South Asia itself. [6]

Sources: [2] The Pointer · [4] 24-7PressRelease.com · [6] Bramptonist