India’s government to ‘continue unabated’ despite shocking RCMP allegations, Sikh activist says

Although the RCMP has publicly alleged that Indian government agents have been involved in violent crimes in Canada, a Sikh activist says he thinks New Delhi will “continue unabated” despite the heightened attention.

Moninder Singh, chair of Sikh Federation Canada, said in an interview on Rosemary Barton Live that the Sikh community has “known for over 40 years that this type of interference is happening.”

Singh himself has been given “duty to warn” letters from the RCMP, which is how they can notify people they’ve become aware of a threat to their safety. 

When asked whether he thinks the public allegations will scare the people behind the threats, Singh said he doubts they’ll be “deterred” and instead they’ll continue to target Sikh communities in places like Canada, the United Kingdom and Australia.

Singh also referenced India’s northwestern state of Punjab, the country’s only Sikh-majority state. There is a history of Sikhs advocating for the establishment of an independent homeland called Khalistan in the region.

Sikhs have also argued the Indian government is committing human rights abuses in Punjab with arbitrary detentions and media blackouts.

“I think all of those factors are why the Indian government will kind of continue unabated by [the RCMP allegations],” Singh said.

Indian authorities deny the allegations of human rights abuses in Punjab and have also denied the accusations from the RCMP.

Singh added that he doesn’t think “safety is paramount for our community right now” and that the goal is ensuring people in Canada don’t have their speech rights violated.

Sikh separatist leader Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, also a dual U.S.-Canadian citizen, said on Rosemary Barton Live that he isn’t worried about his safety, citing his religious beliefs.

U.S. officials have charged a former Indian intelligence officer, Vikash Yadav, who allegedly directed a foiled plot to murder Pannun in New York City last year. 

Pannun told host Rosemary Barton that the stand taken by Prime Minister Trudeau, who claimed last year in the House of Commons that India was behind the killing of a B.C. Sikh activist, “shows an unwavering commitment to the rule of law, to justice and to national security.”

Overall, Pannun said, Sikhs communities in the U.S. and Canada feel their governments are behind them and will not jeopardize the safety of citizens.

Some Sikhs have called for Indian consulates in Vancouver and Toronto to be shut down. They argue Sikhs in Canada won’t be safe unless the consulates are closed.

Singh said that India has been treated with “padded gloves, and that has to change. Otherwise, there’s nothing that’s going to get them to co-operate until they actually feel a bit of the brunt of pressure from the international community.”

India continues to deny allegations

The government of India continues to reject the RCMP’s claim that it’s working with mobsters — claiming Canadian officials have provided no evidence — and has accused Ottawa of trying to smear New Delhi. 

Soon after the RCMP made the public allegations, Canada and India each expelled six diplomats. 

Michelle Tessier, former deputy director of operations for the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS), said the allegations are “obviously very concerning.”

“And I would say, given how public about it the RCMP has been and given the actions taken by the government in expelling diplomats, it needs to be based on very solid information,” Tessier said on Rosemary Barton Live.

While testifying at the foreign interference inquiry on Wednesday, Prime Minister Trudeau said the decision to publicize the allegations of violence in Canada was made to disrupt such activities. 

Trudeau said that the Mounties probably would have preferred to keep the accusations out of the public eye, as there are currently cases before the courts. He said the threat to public safety was so high that the allegations needed to be put forward.