Amid fears of Sikh terrorism and the demand for Khalistan rising in many parts of the world, designated terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar, who headed pro-Khalistan outfits Khalistan Tiger Force and the Canadian arm of Sikhs For Justice (SFJ), was shot dead by unknown attackers at a parking lot of a gurdwara in Surrey, Canada, on Monday. Nijjar was the second associate of SFJ chief Gurpatwant Singh Pannu and the third Khalistani terrorist to have died in the last 45 days.
Sikhs For Justice (SFJ), a separatist organization, is banned in India for promoting enmity among groups and trying to incite Khalistan sentiment among Sikhs. The founder of SFJ, Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, is yet to face any action.
India has clamped down on organisations and individuals trying to stoke separatist sentiment in different countries. India had, on September 23, issued an advisory for Indian nationals and students in Canada to remain vigilant amid increasing incidents of crimes and anti-India activities in the country.
Punjab police arrested Amritpal Singh in March, after a long chase. After this, reports of Pakistan-based Khalistani terrorist Paramjit Singh Panjwar, among the top leaders of the Khalistan Commando Force (KCF), and another leader of Khalistani forces, Avtar Singh Khanda, surfaced.
Nijjar, 46, a native of Jalandhar, was accused of reviving Babbar Khalsa International (BKI), one of the oldest Khalistani terror groups based in Canada, by providing financial support to the outfit.
According to government sources, organizations like Babbar Khalsa International (BKI), Khalistan Commando Force (KCF) and International Sikh Youth Federation (ISYF) have been trying to use propaganda to spread separatist sentiment in many countries, as the Khalistani cause has little traction in Punjab.
US's National Counter-Terrorism Strategy, unveiled in October 2018, categorically stated that Babbar Khalsa wants to establish an independent Sikh state through terror and violence.
Nijjar was charged for his alleged involvement in an explosion near Satya Narayan temple in Patiala in 2010 and for plotting to kill religious leaders in the state. Punjab Police was looking for him in various terror-related cases in the state.
The National Investigation Agency had listed him as "most wanted." When Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau visited India in February 2018, he was handed a list of criminals by then Punjab chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh, which included Nijjar's name. The terrorist was arrested by Canadian authorities in April 2018, but was released without any charges being filed.
To counter the revival of militancy in Punjab, Indian diplomats have been talking to different foreign governments, including UK, Canada and Australia. The Ministry of External Affairs has been specifically more proactive in this area. PM Modi had raised this concern, specifically during his recent visit to Australia.
In a protest by Khalistan supporters at the High Commission of India in London in March, a protestor climbed the mission's balcony and pulled down the Indian flag. After that, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar had flagged the issue of Indian Missions in the UK being under the threat of separatists and anti-India elements when UK's Minister of State Tariq Ahmad called on him.
Foreign Ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi had recently said that it was deeply objectionable that politically motivated exercises by extremist elements were allowed to take place in a friendly country. "You're all aware of the history of violence in this regard. And the government of India will continue to press the government of Canada on this matter," he said.
Since 2015, there has been a resurgence of the Khalistan movement. In the past six years, more than 20 incidents, including the killings of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and Hindutva leaders and attacks on Sikh preachers, have been linked to Khalistan separatists.
The farmers' protests, which erupted in Punjab in September 2020, became a major rallying point for some of these sections, although the farmers' outfits have tried to keep Khalistan backers out of their agitation.
Last year, over a lakh Canadian Sikhs took part in the voting for the Khalistan Referendum in Brampton, Ontario, organised by SFJ. Earlier this year, the BAPS Swaminarayan Mandir in Toronto was vandalised by the Canadian Khalistani extremists.
