The murder of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a Sikh separatist leader, in Canada in June has ignited diplomatic tensions between Ottawa and New Delhi, with Canada suspecting India’s involvement in the killing, while India dismisses the allegations as “absurd.”
Here’s what we know about Hardeep Singh Nijjar:
Hardeep Singh Nijjar was born in 1977 in Jalandhar district, India’s northern state of Punjab. He relocated to Canada in 1997, where he worked as a plumber, as reported by the Khalistan Extremism Monitor of the New Delhi-based independent Institute for Conflict Management.
Initially associated with the Babbar Khalsa International (BKI) Sikh separatist group, according to India’s National Investigation Agency. India has designated BKI a “terrorist organization” and alleges it receives funding from Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) spy agency, a claim Islamabad denies.
Later, Nijjar became the leader of the militant group Khalistan Tiger Force (KTF) and was deeply involved in organizing, networking, training, and financing its members, per a 2020 Indian government statement. New Delhi officially labeled him a “terrorist” in the same statement, accusing him of promoting sedition and insurrection and attempting to sow discord among various communities in India.
For supporters advocating for an independent Sikh state of Khalistan, Nijjar was a prominent leader and a strong proponent of the cause.
He was elected as the head of the Guru Nanak Sikh Gurudwara, a Sikh place of worship, in Surrey, the Vancouver suburb where he resided. He held this position at the time of his death.
Nijjar was fatally shot outside the same gurudwara on the evening of June 18.
Following his murder, hundreds of people protested outside the Indian consulate in Vancouver, alleging foreign involvement in his death, as reported by local media.
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