Khalistanis again target Indian envoy in Canada
New Delhi, October 30
After a brief hiatus, Khalistani separatists in Canada have again put a price on the head of a senior Indian diplomat for his alleged complicity in the murder of terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar. At the end of the second phase of the so-called Khalistan referendum on October 29, the banned Sikhs For Justice (SFJ) had declared $100,000 for the arrest of India’s High Commissioner to Canada Sanjay Kumar Verma.
At the end of the “voting”, the gathering passed two resolutions calling for the arrest and prosecution of Verma for “conspiring and directing Nijjar’s assassination”. The SFJ also released a new map of “Khalistan”, which does not lay claim to any land in Pakistan and marks Delhi as the “national capital”.
India had earlier taken exception to Canadian Khalistani extremists putting up posters with photos of Indian diplomats accusing them of the murder. As the threat to its diplomats mounted, India stopped issuing visas and relented last week by permitting the issuance of four categories of visas to Canadians.
The announcement was made from a gurdwara in Surrey, which was headed by Nijjar and in front of which he was shot dead in June. The SFJ now plans “referendums” next year in the Canadian cities of Abbotsford, Edmonton, Calgary, and Montreal. These will be dedicated to deceased proponents of the Khalistani cause such as Ravinder Singh Pannu, Bhupinder Singh Kooner and Balbir Singh Khaira, said a SFJ statement.
Chief of the SFJ and designated terrorist Gurpatwant Singh Pannu addressed the gathering virtually.
