There seems to be no end to pro-Khalistan activities in Canada as a fresh hoarding labelling Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Minister of External Affairs Dr S. Jaishankar and India’s high commissioner to Ottawa Sanjay Kumar Verma as ‘Wanted’ has been installed outside Gurdwara Nanak Dev in Surrey where terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar was assassinated in June of this year, per a report by CNN-News18. This comes less than a month after similar hoardings were removed from the Gurudwara and then put up again just two days later, which had called for the assassination of three Indian diplomats in Canada, one high commissioner and two consul generals.
The new hoarding features pictures of Narendra Modi, J Jaishankar and Sanjay Kumar Verma with ‘Enemies of Canada’ written on top and ‘wanted’ written on the bottom. it also has the image of Hardeep Singh Nijjar who is referred to as a ‘martyr’ with the words ‘Khalistan Referendum’. Extremist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun’s separatist organisation Sikhs For Justice is behind the incident and police are reportedly aware of the same, however, no action has been taken to apprehend the offenders.
Before this new hoarding appeared, several hoardings and posters were put up at the gurdwara earlier calling for the assassination of Indian diplomats. The recent hoardings which were removed in the last week of September were installed after the killing of Nijjar, and it called for the assassination of heads of three Indian missions in Canada – Ottawa-based Indian High Commissioner Sanjay Kumar Verma, Consul General of India in Toronto Apoorva Srivastava, and Consul General of India Vancouver Manish.
The poster had the words ‘Assassination wanted’ with the names and photos of the diplomats, and it glorified Hardeep Singh Nijjar and Talwinder Singh Parmar, Babbar Khalsa founder and the mastermind of the 1985 Air India Flight 182 bombing that killed 329 people. Apart from this, the Gurudwara regularly puts up hoardings and posters on the so-called ‘Khalistan referendum’.
After the collapse of diplomatic relations between India and Canada after PM Justin Trudeau accused India of being involved in the murder of Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar, there were lots of outrage against the hoardings outside the Gurudwara. As a result, they were taken down, apparently on the orders of local administration. However, the hoardings had come back just two days later. Now new hoardings have appeared with new names of targets.
Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau attributed the murder of the pro-Khalistan radical to the Indian government on the basis of “credible allegations” without providing any evidence. India responded firmly and refuted the unfounded accusations which heightened the existing acute tensions between the two countries.
After Canada dismissed India’s diplomat the Canadian High Commissioner to India Cameron MacKay was summoned and a senior Canadian diplomat was informed to leave the country in addition to suspending visas to the country’s nationals in retaliation. New Delhi last month told Ottawa to withdraw 41 of its 62 diplomats in the country by 10 October and warned that diplomats who stayed beyond the deadline would lose diplomatic immunity. The Maple Country began the process to do so, however, negotiations about the same are presently underway between the two nations.
Canada has gradually turned into a sanctuary for pro-separatist elements who frequently indulge in anti-India and Hinduphobic activities including vandalisation of Indian high commission, desecration of temples and threatening Hindus living in the western country.
