Jawala Singh had undertaken a simple business enterprise to transport his compatriots to Canada. But the venture ended with political implications. After evading arrest in Kolkata, he stayed in hiding for seven years. Finally, he surrendered to the police at the birth anniversary celebration of Guru Nanak Dev, at Nankana Sahib on November 15, 1921. He spent five years in jail for violating no laws. He joined Congress and in 1937, contested Punjab Legislative Assembly election. Unfortunately, he lost to the Akali candidate, Partap Singh Kairon who later joined Congress and was Punjab Chief Minister from 1952 to 1964. In 1951, Jawala Singh requested Prime Minister Jawahar Lal Nehru to build a memorial at Budge Budge in memory of the martyrs of Komagata Maru. On January 1, 1952, Mr. Nehru unveiled the completed monument which is popularly known as the “Punjabi Monument”. (www.rangandatta.wordpress.com/2013/01/30/komagata-maru-memorial-budge-budge-24-parganas-south/)

Indian community in Canada did not forget Komagata Maru tragedy. Baba Gurdit Singh, his colleagues and the ship have become an integral part of the history of Canada. A giant-sized mural of Baba Gurdit Singh and others in the ship, adorns the front wall of the Senior Citizen Housing Unit in Surrey, near Vancouver. A plaque commemorating the 75th anniversary of the departure of the Komagata Maru was placed in the Sikh temple in Vancouver on July 23, 1989. A plaque commemorating the 80th anniversary of the arrival of the Komagata Maru was placed in the Vancouver harbor in 1994. The first phase of the Komagata Maru Museum was opened in June 2012 at the Khalsa Diwan Society Vancouver Ross Street Temple. A monument in remembrance of the Komagata Maru incident was unveiled on July 23, 2012. It is located near the steps of the seawall near Convention Centre West in Vancouver. The Canadian government provided funding for both the monument and the museum. A stamp commemorating the 100th anniversary of the arrival of the Komagata Maru was released by Canada Post on May 1, 2014. On August 3, 2008, Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper appeared at the 13th annual Gadri Babiyan Da Mela (festival) in Surrey to apology for the Komagata Maru incident. In response to the House of Commons motion calling for an apology by the government, he said, "On behalf of the government of Canada, I am officially conveying as prime minister that apology." 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 harbor, 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."