Singh said voters struggling with the cost of living are dissatisfied with the federal government, while selling his party as the true caretaker of working-class Canadians.

During a speech to Canadian Union of Public Employees, Singh made no mention of the Bloc Québécois -- a party rising in the polls and competing for Quebec votes, both inside and outside the labour movement.

In the incident Wednesday, a man at Montreal's Atwater Market told Singh removing his turban would make him seem more Canadian.