Sikh separatists claim that an Indian “spy network” operates in the US and Canada

NEW YORK – Canada and the United States must take tougher action against Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government for trying to silence dissidents on foreign soil, a controversial Sikh separatist who was the target of an alleged Indian-led murder plot said in an interview.

The United States Department of Justice has opened indictments against two Indian citizens in connection with an alleged plot to murder Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, a dual American-Canadian citizen, in New York. The two Indian defendants included a former government official who, according to the indictment, was working as an intelligence officer at the time and was preparing the assassination plan.

Earlier this month, Pannun told Reuters that the Modi government should not be allowed to conduct hostile activities abroad and claimed that Indian consulates in the US and Canada were running a “spy ring”, although he provided no proof.

The United States and Canada “must step down so that regimes like Modi… cannot come to America or Canada and challenge their sovereignty and get away with it. They must put their foot down and close (the consulates) permanently,” he said.

Pannun did not elaborate on the alleged spy network. Similar claims have been made by Sikh activists in America and Canada.

India’s foreign ministry did not respond to detailed questions from Reuters about Pannun’s allegations. India, where Pannun was born, has recognized him as a terrorist since 2020.

U.S. and Canadian authorities declined to comment on Pannun’s allegations.

The United States and Canada have alleged that Indian agents were involved in plots last year in their countries to attack activists in favor of “Khalistan,” a Sikh homeland they want to carve out of the Indian state of Punjab, where Sikh militancy in the 1980s and 1990s. In the 20th century it killed thousands of people.

India has denied involvement in any of the plots.

The allegations have damaged India’s relations with Canada and tested relations between Washington and New Delhi.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has accused the Indian government of involvement in the 2023 murder of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, another Sikh separatist leader in Canada. In May, Canadian police arrested and charged four Indians with murder. These are yet to be tried.

India said Canada provided no evidence to support its allegations, and New Delhi and Ottawa each expelled six diplomats earlier this month amid a growing diplomatic row.

However, India said it was investigating the murder against Pannun, and US officials said they wanted a quick result.

Pannun said Vikash Yadav, a former Indian official accused by the US in an alleged attempt on his life, was merely a “mid-level soldier” tasked with organizing the killing by senior Indian officials. He did not provide any evidence or say how he came to this conclusion.

New Delhi said Yadav was no longer a government employee, without saying whether he was an intelligence officer or providing details of when he left. Yadav’s whereabouts are unknown, but earlier this month his family told Reuters that he had been in contact with him and denied the allegations in the US indictment.

Indian security officials have expressed concern that rising support for Khalistan abroad could lead to a resurgence of militancy that previously paralyzed the state of Punjab, the cradle of Sikh nationalism, where the movement for a separate homeland currently enjoys little support.

Pannun, who has organized independent referendums in the U.S., Canada and Europe on the creation of Khalistan, said in an interview that his movement advocates a peaceful solution to the issue and will continue despite threats to his life. REUTERS