Hardeep Singh Nijjar Archives - Lokmarg

NZ Stresses Need For Investigation Of Canadian Allegations Against India

By LokMarg 14th March 2024

New Zealand’s Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters emphasised the importance of allowing the ongoing investigation to unfold before definitive conclusions are drawn in the allegations made by the Canadian government against India concerning the killing of India designated terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar.

New Zealand a member of the Five-Eyes intelligence alliance maintains its stance that if the allegations are proven true, it would raise serious concerns.

John Tulloch, spokesperson for the Deputy PM, reiterated New Zealand’s position, emphasizing the necessity for the investigation to reach its conclusion before making judgments.

“New Zealand’s position on the allegations remains unchanged; if they are proven correct, then that would be of serious concern. The minister’s point is that this is an ongoing criminal investigation. It needs to run its course before clear conclusions can be drawn,” Tulloch told ANI.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau previously alleged a potential link between Nijjar’s killing and Indian government agents, which India rejected as “absurd and motivated.”

Nijjar, a designated terrorist in India, was shot and killed outside a Gurudwara in British Columbia on June 18 last year. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), however, has yet to name any suspects or make arrests in connection with the killing. Nijjar’s death sparked a diplomatic row between India and Canada.

This led to the straining of diplomatic relations between India and Canada, raising concerns about the future of the bilateral partnership.

Meanwhile, New Zealand Foreign Minister Winston Peters completed a successful visit to India from March 10 to 13, saying it was an important step in taking the relationship between the two countries to the next level.

“New Zealand and India are two countries that can, should and will be doing more together,” Peters said, adding, “My visit has demonstrated a joint commitment to investing more in building a broad-based, mutually beneficial relationship.”

In New Delhi, Peters reconnected with his counterpart, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar.

“It is clear that New Zealand and India share common strategic perspectives about the security challenges our Indo-Pacific region faces, as well as a commitment to do more together to meet them,” Peters also said.

“Minister Jaishankar and I agreed to work together to unlock more opportunities and achieve a step up in the relationship between New Zealand and India. Further high-level political visits in both directions during 2024 will be a crucial part of this process,” he added.

Peters also visited the Swaminarayan Akshardham temple in Gandhinagar, Gujarat and met with representatives of the Jama Masjid Mosque in New Delhi. (ANI)

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India Canada Relations Face A Setback: Foreign Policy Experts

By LokMarg 19th September 2023

Stating that is less likely that Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will change his approach on the Khalistan issue, Robinder Sachdev, an expert in foreign affairs said that it seems that the India-Canada relations will be taking a back seat.

He further said that the Canadian government has expelled the Indian diplomat because India gave a message to Canada to address the Khalistan issue.

Speaking to ANI, Sachdev said, “In my opinion, this move by Canada is a retaliation for India stopping the trade deal between the two nations. PM Modi during G20, told Justin Trudeau to address the Khalistan issue in Canada seriously. India gave a message to Canada by halting the trade deal between the two nations”.

“In response, Canada has taken this petty step of expelling an Indian diplomat, by levelling such serious allegations. This has no basis and is completely uncalled for,” he added.

He further said that India has sufficient evidence of Khalistani activities in Canada and Ottawa needs to change its approach.

“We have sufficient evidence and proof, we see and hear in the media, that Khalistani elements are extremely active in Canada…The Trudeau government will have to change its approach. But unfortunately, Trudeau won’t, and he is the PM of Canada at least till October 2025, so it seems the India-Canada relations will take a back seat,” Sachdev said.

Sachdev also raised concerns about the Canadian government taking the “baseless allegation” at the international level which can hurt India’s image as well as India-Canada ties.

“The Trudeau government might take some more steps. The Canadian PM Office has said that Trudeau has spoken with US President Joe Biden and UK PM Rishi Sunak on this matter. Whatever difference of opinion is there between India and Canada should be a bilateral matter. Canada should not take across the world this baseless allegation, which disturbs India’s image and as well as is not good for India-Canada relations,” Sachdev added.

Meanwhile, in a reciprocal move to the expulsion of its diplomat by Canada, India on Tuesday, summoned the Canadian High Commissioner Cameron MacKay and informed him that it was expelling a senior Canadian diplomat.

Canadian PM Trudeau on Monday accused the Indian government of being behind the fatal shooting of Hardeep Singh Nijjar. He claimed that his country’s national security officials had reasons to believe that “agents of the Indian government” carried out the killing of the Canadian citizen, who also served as the president of Surrey’s Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdwara.

Nijjar, who was wanted in India, was gunned down outside a Gurdwara, in a parking area in Canada’s Surrey, British Columbia on June 18. Hailing from Bharsinghpur village in Punjab’s Jalandhar, Nijjar was based in Surrey and had been declared “absconder” by the National Investigation Agency (NIA).

In a further souring of ties, this was followed by Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Joly on Monday said an Indian diplomat in the country had been expelled.

India has, however, rejected the allegations by Canadian PM Trudeau regarding the government’s involvement in the fatal shooting of Nijjar. In a statement, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) termed the allegations ‘absurd ‘and ‘motivated’.

“We have seen and rejected the statement of the Canadian Prime Minister in their Parliament, as also the statement by their Foreign Minister,” said the MEA in an official statement. (ANI)

Tit For Tat: India Expels Canadian Diplomat In Reciprocal Move

By LokMarg 19th September 2023

India on Tuesday expelled a senior Canadian diplomat to India in a reciprocal move to Canada expelling a senior Indian diplomat.

The move comes after India rejected as “absurd and motivated” Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s charge that India played a role in the June killing of a Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar.

Canadian High Commissioner to India, Cameron MacKay was summoned today to the South Block, the headquarters of Ministry of External Affairs.

“The High Commissioner of Canada to India was summoned today and informed about the decision of the Government of India to expel a senior Canadian diplomat based in India,” a statement from the Ministry of External Affairs said today.

“The concerned diplomat has been asked to leave India within the next five days. The decision reflects the Government of India’s growing concern at the interference of Canadian diplomats in our internal matters and their involvement in anti-India activities,” it said.

Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Joly on Monday said an Indian diplomat in Canada had been expelled, Joly said the Canadian government had expelled the Indian diplomat over allegations of the country’s involvement in the killing of the Khalistani leader

“We see this possible breach of sovereignty as completely unacceptable, and so, that is also why we’re coming (out) with this information (of the expulsion of the Indian diplomat) today,” Joly said at a news conference.

Meanwhile, India rejected allegations made by Trudeau in the Canadian Parliament.

“We have seen and reject the statement of the Canadian Prime Minister in their Parliament, as also the statement by their Foreign Minister” said the MEA in an official statement.

“Allegations of the Indian government’s “involvement in any act of violence in Canada are absurd and motivated” a statement said.

“Similar allegations were made by the Canadian Prime Minister to our Prime Minister and were completely rejected,” said the official release.

The statement said India is a democratic polity with a strong commitment to the rule of law.

“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. The inaction of the Canadian Government on this matter has been a long-standing and continuing concern,” the MEA statement said.

The release states that Canadian political figures have openly expressed sympathy for such elements and that remain a matter of deep concern.

“The space given in Canada to a range of illegal activities including murders, human trafficking and organised crime is not new” read the release.

India has strongly rejected any attempts to connect the government to such developments.

“We urge the Government of Canada to take prompt and effective legal action against all anti-India elements operating from their soil,” the MEA said.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Monday accused the Indian government of being behind the fatal shooting of Khalistan Tiger Force chief Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Canada, CBC News reported.

Najjar, who was wanted in India, was gunned down outside a Gurdwara, in a parking area in Canada’s Surrey, British Columbia on June 18.

Hailing from Bharsinghpur village in Punjab’s Jalandhar, Nijjar was based in Surrey and had been declared “absconder” by the National Investigation Agency (NIA).

Earlier on Monday, speaking in a debate in the Canadian Parliament, Canadian PM Trudeau claimed his country’s national security officials had reasons to believe that “agents of the Indian government” carried out the killing of the Canadian citizen, who also served as the president of Surrey’s Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdwara.

“Canadian security agencies have been actively pursuing credible allegations of a potential link between agents of the Government of India and the killing of a Canadian citizen, Hardeep Singh Nijjar,” Trudeau said.

He stated that the involvement of a foreign hand or government in the killing of a Canadian citizen in Canada was unacceptable.

“Any involvement of a foreign government in the killing of a Canadian citizen on Canadian soil is an unacceptable violation of our sovereignty. It is contrary to the fundamental rules by which free, open, and democratic societies conduct themselves,” Trudeau added.

He informed further that he was coordinating with Canadian allies on this issue.

“As you would expect, we have been working closely and coordinating with our allies on this very serious matter,” he said. (ANI)

India Rejects Canada’s Charge On Role In Hardeep Nijjar’s Killing

By LokMarg 19th September 2023

India on Tuesday rejected Canada’s allegations of being involved in the killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar the Chief of Khalistan Tiger Force and a designated terrorist.

In a statement the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said ” We have seen and reject the statement of the Canadian Prime Minister in their Parliament, as also the statement by their Foreign Minister.”

“Allegations of Government of India’s involvement in any act of violence in Canada are absurd and motivated” the statement said.

“Similar allegations were made by the Canadian Prime Minister to our Prime Minister, and were completely rejected. We are a democratic polity with a strong commitment to rule of law” the statement further said.

Hardeep Singh Nijjar, the chief of Khalistan Tiger Force (KTF) — a Sikh extremist organisation banned by India — and a “designated terrorist” was killed in a targeted shooting in Canada’s Surrey in June 2018.

His death under suspicious circumstances led to speculation in Canadian media that he had been allegedly eliminated at the hands of his erstwhile comrades who had turned against him.

He was shot dead by unidentified assailants in the parking lot of Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdwara in Surrey.

Hardeep Singh Nijjar was designated a ‘terrorist’ by India under the stringent Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act in July 2020 and his property in the country was attached by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) in September 2020.

The extremist organisation Khalistan Tiger Force (KTF) was also banned by the Ministry of Home Affairs.

The ministry stated that KTF “aims to revive terrorism” in Punjab, challenging the “territorial integrity, unity, national security and sovereignty of India” and “promotes various acts of “terrorism, including targeted killings” in Punjab, as per the Ministry.

In addition to this, an Interpol Red Corner Notice was issued against Nijjar in 2016. The local police of Surrey had also put Nijjar under house arrest temporarily in 2018 on suspicion of his terror involvement but he was released later.

Nijjar, a native of village Bhar Singh Pura in Jalandhar, Punjab, had long been involved with Khalistan militancy since migrating to Canada in 1995. Initially, an operative of Babbar Khalsa, he was involved in some of the most high-profile terror cases of the first decade of the millennium including the Shingar Cinema bomb blast in Ludhiana in 2007 and the assassination of Rashtriya Sikh Sangat President Rulda Singh in Patiala in 2009.

He was introduced to Pakistan-based fugitive Khalistan Tiger Force (KTF) supremo Jagtar Singh Tara, now incarcerated in India, in 2011 and switched to the newly formed KTF. He kept on meeting Tara in Pakistan in the annual jathas, during which he was allegedly trained in the fabrication of IEDs and handling of high-end guns.

Nijjar also funded Tara handsomely from Canada and financed his shifting of the base from Pakistan to Thailand in 2014, according to sources.

When Tara was facing deportation from Thailand in late 2014, Nijjar made frantic efforts to stop it, making multiple rounds of Thailand and Pakistan.

The next year, Nijjar allegedly trained three Sikh youths in handling AK-47 and Russian sniper guns in the hilly terrain of Mission City, British Columbia before sending them to India to target some senior police officials and popular Dera leaders.

Nijjar also formed an alliance with fellow Surrey-based Punjabi gangster Arshdeep Singh Gill alias Arsh Dala and off late delved into organised financial crimes both in Punjab and in Canada in order to finance his terror plans. This latest venture had also reportedly made Nijjar a target of the warring criminal gangs operating in the Surrey-Delta area.

Nijjar also led an intimidatory campaign against the then Jathedar Akal Takht, Giani Harpreet Singh who was to visit Canada on Malik’s invitation last year forcing Jathedar to cancel his visit. Nijjar’s name was also figured as a suspect in Ripudaman Malik’s assassination.

Wanted in several violent terrorist incidents in India and Canada, 45-year-old Nijjar carried a cash reward of Rs 10 lakhs on his head.

There have been frequent allegations that funds from the Surrey shrine were being embezzled for funding terror activities in Punjab. (ANI)