Surrey temple shooting suspect gets bail

A Surrey, B.C., radio station manager charged with shooting a man in the parking lot of a Sikh temple is being released on $200,000 bail.

Radio India broadcaster Maninder Gill, 47, turned himself in to police two days after Surrey builder Harjit Atwal was shot in the leg at a wedding at the Guru Nanak temple near 72nd Avenue and Scott Road on Aug. 28.

Gill was charged with aggravated assault and numerous firearms charges. He was held in custody while awaiting his bail hearing on Thursday morning in Surrey provincial court.

Under the conditions of his release, Gill must stay away from the temple and not contact the victim or his family.

Atwal, who is still recovering from the gunshot wound, filed a lawsuit against Gill and Radio India before the shooting.

In the lawsuit, Atwal, a former member of the International Sikh Youth Federation, listed in Canada as an illegal terrorist organization, alleged the station broadcast false allegations about his family and his public behaviour.

Supporters of both men and South Asian journalists filled the high-security courtroom for the bail hearing.

Gill, who is well-known in the community and well-connected to business owners and politicians, was released on Thursday afternoon.