Hardeep Singh Nijjar, president of the Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdwara Sikhs For Justice, a Khalistani separatist group operating from Canada, has called for peaceful protests with threat to ‘shut down’ Indian consulate offices in Canada next week over Hardeep Singh Nijjar’s alleged murder. Nijjar, president of the Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdwara, was allegedly shot dead on June 18 at the Surrey temple’s parking lot after evening prayers.Prime Minister Justin Trudeau revealed on Monday, September 18, that authorities had obtained “credible” intelligence “agents of the government of India” were behind the murder. India’s Ministry of External Affairs has strongly denied the claims and retaliated by sacking Canadian dimplomat.was allegedly shot dead on June 18
According to report by Global news protests are set to take place outside Indian consulates in Ottawa, Toronto and Vancouver next week. “We will not allow the Indian consulates to function and we’re going to push the Canadian government to name the individuals who are responsible for assassinating and giving the orders to hit Nijjar,” Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, legal counsel for Sikhs for Justice was quoted by Global NewsIndia said in a statement that it rejects “any attempts to connect Government of India to such developments,” calling itself “a democratic polity with a strong commitment to rule of law.” The Ministry of External Affairs wrote, “We urge the Government of Canada to take prompt and effective legal action against all anti-India elements operating from their soil.”
Sikhs for Justice, which is known for organising referendum votes on Khalistan around the world, is seeking the expulsion of Indian High Commissioner to Canada Sanjay Verma. Calling the alleged murder an attack against Sikhs and also on Canadian sovereignty.Harkireet Kaur, a member of the North American Sikh Association, said Hardeep was “like a father” at the GurdwaraPeople are livid right now. This is a news story that obviously has shaken the whole country. It’s also a news story that has shaken the community to a certain extent,” said Jaskaran Sandhu, a board member with the World Sikh Organization of CanadaHardeep’s murder is being investigated by the RCMP. No arrests have been made yet. However, investigators are on the lookout for three suspects. A suspect vehicle believed to be the getaway car has reportedly already been identified
India expelled a senior Canadian diplomat Tuesday and accused Canada of interfering in its internal affairs, escalating a breach with Ottawa over its allegations of Indian involvement in the killing of a Sikh activist in CanadaIt came a day after Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said there were credible allegations that India was connected to the assassination of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a Sikh independence advocate who was gunned down on June 18 outside a Sikh cultural center in Surrey, British Columbia, and Canada expelled a top Indian diplomat. India rejected the allegations as “absurdIndia has fought against a movement to establish an independent Sikh homeland known as Khalistan since the 1980s, when a raid on separatists in a major temple led to the assassination of a prime minister and a wave of anti-Sikh violence
Nijjar was wanted by Indian authorities, who accused the activist of involvement in an alleged attack on a Hindu priest in India and had offered a cash reward for information leading to his arrest. Nijjar was organizing an unofficial referendum on Sikh independence from India at the time of this death.Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, a lawyer and spokesperson for the Sikhs For Justice organization, has said Nijjar had been warned by Canadian intelligence officials about being targeted for assassination by “mercenaries” before he was gunned downTrudeau told Parliament Monday that Canadian security agencies were investigating “credible allegations of a potential link between agents of the government of India and the killing of a Canadian citizen
Such unsubstantiated allegations seek to shift the focus from Khalistani terrorists and extremists, who have been provided shelter in Canada and continue to threaten India’s sovereignty and territorial integrity,” it wrote in a statement issued earlier TuesdayAny involvement of a foreign government in the killing of a Canadian citizen on Canadian soil is an unacceptable violation of our sovereignty,” he saidIndia has long demanded that Canada take action against the Sikh independence movement, which is banned in India but has support in countries like Canada and the U.K. with sizable Sikh diaspora populations. Canada has a Sikh population of more than 770,000, about 2% of its total populationCritics accuse Modi’s Hindu nationalist government of seeking to suppress dissenters and activists using sedition laws and other legal weapons. Some critics of his administration, including intellectuals, activists, filmmakers, students and journalists have been arrested, creating what Modi’s opponents say is a culture of intimidation