In the wake of the recent development when India and Canada expelled six diplomats of each other, pushing the bilateral relations to a record low, the moot question is who is Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, who is supposed to be the main reason for the unfortunate situation? He recently hit the headlines after he had threatened Canadian MP Chandra Arya for condemning the Khalistani movement in Canada, accusing him of “siding with India” and asking him to “go back to India”. The Justin Trudeau government, which expelled Indian diplomats on suspicion of being involved in the alleged assassination attempt of Khalistani extremist leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar, has not yet taken any action against Pannun.
Who Is Gurpatwant Singh Pannun?
The legal advisor and spokesperson of ‘Sikhs For Justice’, the separatist outfit that masquerades as a human rights orgnisation, was declared a “terrorist” in July 2020 on the grounds of “sedition” and “secessionism”. New Delhi also asked Interpol to issue a red-corner notice against Pannun.
Born on the outskirts of Amritsar in Punjab, Gurpatwant Singh Pannun claims to hold dual citizenship of the US and Canada and divides his time between the two neighbouring countries. He has released hundreds of propaganda videos, full of anti-India rants. If media reports are to be believed, Pannun funds individuals and organisations that hold anti-India demonstrations, besides terror funding in the two countries.
Anti-India Rants, Threats
Violating the freedom of speech, guaranteed in the Canadian Constitution, Pannun openly threatened individuals planning to travel by Air India on November 19, when the 2023 Cricket World Cup final was played. It created ripples in Canada with Federal ministers Pierre Poilievre and Jagmeet Singh, condemning the video.
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Though Canadian Public Safety Minister, Dominic LeBlanc, called the video “offensive and hateful”, no action was taken against Pannun, emboldening him further.
Pannun Threatens Punjab CM
Undeterred, and partly encouraged by the continuous inaction of the government, Pannun released yet another video in January 2024, threatening Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann and comparing it with to former CM Beant Singh, who was assassinated while in office.
‘Referendum 2020’
‘Sikhs For Justice’ also held ‘Referendum 2020’ on the creation of a separated homeland carved out of Punjab, but it failed miserably with just a few thousand of Sikhs participating in it, much to the chagrin of the separatist leader.
Canada Takes No Action Against Pannun
Gurpatwant Singh Pannun faces 22 criminal cases in India. However, Interpol rejected India’s second request to issue a Red Corner Notice on terror charges in October 2022.
Though Ottawa has accused India of not taking action against its diplomats for being involved in the alleged assassination attempt of Pannun, a high-level investigation team arrived in the US on Tuesday to join the probe.
India- Canada Ties At Historic Low
The Indo-Canadian relations hit rock bottom after New Delhi expelled six Canadian Diplomats: Acting High Commissioner Stewart Ross Wheeler, Deputy High Commissioner Patrick Hebert, First Secretaries Marie Catherine Joly, lan Ross David Trites, Adam James Chuipka and Paula Orjuela. The Ministry of External Affairs asked them to leave India by or before Saturday, October 19, 2024.
India swung into action after Canada declared six Indian diplomats as ‘persons of interest’. New Delhi withdrew its envoy Sanjay Kumar Verma saying that it has “no faith in the current Canadian Government’s commitment to ensure their security”. It also strongly dismissed Canada’s allegations linking the envoy to an investigation into the killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar.
