The shocking allegation that India may have been behind the assassination of a Sikh separatist leader in Canada is shining the light on various layers of activism as well as diverse views on a separate Sikh state or Khalistan within the North American diaspora.
Nijjar, a prominent Sikh leader in British Columbia, was designated a terrorist by India in 2020 for his alleged links to the Khalistan Tiger Force, a group campaigning for independent Khalistan in the Punjab region of India. The active insurgency ended decades ago, but Prime Minster Narendra Modi’s government recently warned that Sikh separatists were trying to stage a comeback and pressed countries like Canada to do more to stop them.
India has outlawed the Khalistan movement. Groups associated with it are listed as terrorist organizations under India’s Unlawful Activities Act and are considered a serious security threat by the government. In the U.S. and Canada, Khalistani activism is not illegal and is protected under free speech laws.
“Sikh sovereignty means having your independent, autonomous state where you have total control of the state’s resources,” Pannun said, adding that Sikhs in India are still forced to live under Hindu laws governing marriage, inheritance and adoption. Pannun faces sedition and a slew of other charges in India and has faced criticism for saying “Indo-Hindus who work against the interests of Canada” should return to India.
Not all agree that Khalistani activism is on the rise in the diaspora. Amandeep Sandhu, India-based journalist and author of “Panjab: Journeys Through Fault Lines,” believes it remains a fringe movement. Even if 200,000 people may have shown up to vote at referendums held so far, that number is small compared to the 30 million Sikhs who live in India and around the world, he said.
Neither the Sikh community in India nor the diaspora is monolithic, he said. In India, Sikhs are also among the most patriotic. They are about 2% of India’s population, but form 8% of the nation’s army, and Sikh soldiers are among the nation’s most decorated, Sandhu said.
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