Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

India confiscates properties of Nijjar’s ally

Sikhs For Justice founder Pannun's office downplays New Delhi's action

India confiscates properties of Nijjar’s ally

INDIA'S top investigation agency has confiscated the properties of a prominent Sikh separatist and close ally of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, whose killing has sparked a diplomatic row between India and Canada.

Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, a lawyer believed to be based in Canada, was designated as a terrorist by Indian authorities in 2020 and is wanted on charges of terrorism and sedition.

He is also the founder of the US-based group Sikhs For Justice (SFJ), whose Canada chapter was headed by Nijjar before he was gunned down by masked assailants in June near Vancouver.

The group, which has been banned by India, has been a vocal advocate for the creation of an independent Sikh homeland called Khalistan.

A diplomatic firestorm erupted last week with Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau saying there were "credible reasons to believe that agents of the government of India were involved" in Nijjar's death.

New Delhi dismissed Trudeau's allegations as "absurd", tit-for-tat diplomatic expulsions followed, and India has stopped processing visa applications by Canadians.

Pannun jumped into the raging row and issued a video telling Canadian Hindus to "go back to India", claiming they had adopted a "jingoistic approach" by siding with New Delhi.

In an interview with an Indian news channel, Pannun said Nijjar had been his "close associate" for more than 20 years and was like a "younger brother" to him. He also blamed India for Nijjar's killing.

'Heinous crimes'

Soon after his interview was aired, the Indian government issued an advisory to news networks asking them to refrain from giving a platform to people accused of "heinous crimes".

Armed with court orders, officials of India's National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Saturday (23) confiscated Pannun's house in Chandigarh, the capital of the Sikh-majority state of Punjab, it said in a statement.

The NIA also confiscated agricultural land belonging to him in Amritsar, it added.

It accused Pannun of "actively exhorting Punjab-based gangsters and youth" on social media "to fight for the cause of independent state of Khalistan, challenging the sovereignty, integrity and security of the country".

In a statement mailed to AFP, Pannun's office downplayed the confiscation of his properties.

"The issue at the heart of the conflict with India is not the properties of Pannun," it said.

"This is about the Sikh homeland Punjab that is occupied by India and the resources of the indigenous people of Punjab that are being plundered by Delhi," it added.

Sikhism is a minority religion originating in northern India that traces its roots back to the 15th century and drew influences from both Hinduism and Islam.

The Khalistan campaign was largely considered a benign fringe movement until the early 1980s, when a Sikh fundamentalist launched a violent separatist insurgency.

It culminated with Indian forces storming the Golden Temple, the faith's holiest shrine in Amritsar, where separatists had barricaded themselves.

India's prime minister Indira Gandhi was subsequently assassinated by two of her Sikh bodyguards.

The insurgency was eventually brought under control and the Khalistan movement's most vocal advocates are now among the large Sikh diaspora, particularly in Canada, Britain and Australia.

But memories of the violence - in which thousands died - still haunt India, which has outlawed the Khalistan movement and listed several associated groups as "terrorist organisations".

(AFP)

More For You

british-muslims-iStock

The study noted that this identification was not due to any doctrinal obligation but was influenced by the perception that many Muslims do not feel fully accepted as British. (Representational image: iStock)

iStock

Majority of British Muslims identify by faith first, study finds

A STUDY by the Institute for the Impact of Faith in Life (IIFL) has found that most British Muslims identify primarily with their religion rather than their nationality.

The research, based on a survey of 815 British Muslim adults by Whitestone Insight, revealed that 71 per cent of respondents identified as Muslim first, while 27 per cent identified as British, English, or Scottish first.

Keep ReadingShow less
Car Tax Changes: EV Owners Now Required to Pay for the First Time

Owners of electric vehicles registered on or after 1 April 2025 will pay £10 for the first year, followed by the standard VED rate of £195 from the second year. (Representational image: iStock)

iStock

Car tax changes take effect: EV owners to pay for first time

FROM today, 1 April 2025, electric cars, vans, and motorcycles in the UK will be subject to Vehicle Excise Duty (VED) for the first time.

The change, introduced in the 2022 Autumn Statement by former Conservative Chancellor Jeremy Hunt, aims to make motoring taxation fairer.

Keep ReadingShow less
scotland-minimum-wages-iStock

Full-time workers on the National Living Wage will receive an annual pay increase of £1,400 in real terms. (Representational image: iStock)

iStock

Wage increase takes effect for thousands of workers in Scotland

HUNDREDS of thousands of workers in Scotland will see a pay increase as new National Living Wage and National Minimum Wage rates take effect from Tuesday.

The changes will benefit approximately 220,000 people, according to STV News.

Keep ReadingShow less
uk-energy-bill-iStock

Water bills, energy prices, and council tax are rising, while the minimum wage has also increased (Representational image: iStock)

iStock

April bill increases put financial strain on single parents

A RANGE of essential household bills are increasing from April, with Citizens Advice warning that single parents will be among the hardest hit.

Water bills, energy prices, and council tax are rising, while the minimum wage has also increased, BBC reported.

Keep ReadingShow less
Netflix drama Adolescence to be screened in UK schools
Stephen Graham and Owen Cooper in 'Adolescence'
Netflix

Netflix drama Adolescence to be screened in UK schools

THE NETFLIX drama Adolescence will be shown in UK secondary schools as part of efforts to address harmful online influences on young boys, officials announced on Monday.

The show has sparked debate over the impact of toxic and misogynistic content on the internet. Prime minister Keir Starmer met the show's creators, charities, and young people at Downing Street, calling the initiative an important step in starting discussions about the content teenagers are exposed to online.

Keep ReadingShow less