International Desk, 21st September: Barely days after Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau accused the Indian government of assassinating Pro-Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in June of this year, another terrorist Sukhdool Singh aka Sukha Duneke was killed last night in Canada in inter-gang, sources said. Duneke was a category “A” a gangster from Punjab’s Moga who fled to Canada via Nepal on a fake passport 2017, despite having 18 criminal cases against him in Punjab. Jailed gangster Lawrence Bishnoi’s gang has claimed responsibility for the killing. He was a close associate of gangster and Khalistani terrorist Arshdeep Dalla and is of the 43 gangsters with links to Khalistan and Canada mentioned in a list released by the anti-terror agency National Investigation Agency (NIA) yesterday.
The killing comes in the backdrop of a huge diplomatic row between India and Canada after Canadian Justin Trudeau told the House of Commons earlier this week that his government had “credible allegations” that linked Indian government agents to the killing of Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar on Canadian soil in June. Both India and Canada had expelled a senior diplomat each following Mr Trudeau’s accusations. India has denied the allegation, calling them “absurd” and “motivated”. Nijjar 45 was an Indian terrorist and chief of the banned Khalistan Tiger Force (KTF) and was assassinated outside a gurudwara in Surrey, British Columbia, on June 18. He was one of India’s most wanted terrorists who carried a cash reward of Rs 10 lakh.
According to sources, Hardeep Singh Nijjar was killed following an inter-gang rivalry. Does the Canadian government have any credible proof that links the Indian government to the killing as claimed by Mr. Trudeau, or is it backlash for the treatment Mr. Trudeau received in India on his recent visit for the G20 meet.
Before Nijjar, another terrorist wanted in India Paramjeet Singh Panjwar was shot dead in Lahore, Pakistan in early May. Panjwar was the chief of the terror outfit Khalistan Commando Force. The 3rd Khalistan terrorist to die recently was the self-style chief Khalistan Liberation Force, Avtar Singh Khandwa. He died on June 15 at a hospital in Birmingham, UK. While his supporters claimed that he was poisoned, reports suggest he had been suffering from blood cancer. The UK police later said they were not investigating the death because it was deemed “not suspicious”.
Khanda shot into the limelight Indian flag from the Indian High Commission in the UK in March 2023, triggering a diplomatic row between India and the UK. Khanda and his associates led a protest in support of Pro-Khalistan supporters and Waris Punjab De chief Amritpal Singh who is lodged in Dibrugarh jail following his arrest for Anti-India activities. The NIA in September 2020 designated Hardeep Singh Nijjar as a terrorist under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, of 1967. The NIA mentioned Nijjar’s status as an “absconder” and sought assistance from the public to know his whereabouts. In 2020 the NIA also attached Nijjar’s immovable properties in Bhar Singh Pura in Jalandhar. He had many cases registered against him. In 2018 NIA registered an FIR against Nijjar in Delhi. The FIR says he was conspiring and planning to carry out a major terrorist attack in India.
It also claimed he was engaged in activities which were prejudicial to the sovereignty and integrity of India. Nijjar was in the spotlight after the killing of Ripudaman Singh Malik, who was acquitted in the Air India bombing of 1985. Malik was also shot dead in Surrey, on June 15th, 2022. Incidentally, days before his killing, Nijjar gave an interview to Surrey based radio broadcaster and journalist Gurpreet Singh claiming his name was also on a “hit list” and that there was a pattern in the killings of Khalistani activists.
The fact that some Indian right-wing social media accounts had celebrated Nijjar’s killing also prompted accusations that Indian agencies were involved in the murder. Gurpreet Singh said it is shocking to see such behaviors. “In fact, some social media users were naming the next targets openly but the Indian government is a mute spectator. Its silence is promoting such trolls”, he added. Is Canada speculating Indian involvement or does it have credible proof? We have to wait and see.
Also read: Khalistani Aide Wanted in India Killed in Canada Amid Diplomatic Tensions