Canadian police have accused the Indian government of working with a criminal network run by Lawrence Bishnoi, one of India's most notorious gangsters, to carry out targeted killings of dissidents. Canada.
A diplomatic row between India and Canada erupted on Monday after Canadian police accused Indian diplomats of engaging in “criminal” activities in the country.
Canadian police said they have found evidence linking India's top diplomat Sanjay Verma. A Sikh activist was shot dead outside a gurdwara in suburban Vancouver in June the year after Hardeep Singh Nijjar's murder.
India dismissed the allegations as “ridiculous” and said they were part of the Canadian Prime Minister's political agenda. Justin Trudeau. As tensions between the two countries reached a new high, both countries expelled each other's top diplomats.
The allegations by Canadian police allege that Indian government agents collaborated with a criminal syndicate led by Bishnoi, India's most powerful gang leader, to carry out the killings. They alleged that the South Asian community, “especially pro-Khalistani elements”, were being targeted by the Indian government.
Bishnoi has been in jail since 2014 but is accused of overseeing one of India's largest criminal empires and is involved in several high-profile murders. A politician was shot in Mumbai over the weekend.
“We saw the use of organized crime elements,” Canadian Police Assistant Commissioner Brigitte Gavin told a press conference on Monday. “It is publicly attributed to an organized crime group in particular. We believe that the Bishnoi group has links with agents of the Indian government.
Bishnoi gangs are said to be growing in Canada, home to a sizeable Indian Sikh population. In September 2023, Bishnoi gangs claimed responsibility for the killing of Sukhdul Singh Gill, who was allegedly linked to Khalistani groups and was on the wanted list of the Indian government. Gill was shot dead in the Canadian city of Winnipeg and Canadian investigators say they now believe the killing was carried out at the behest of Indian agents.
Canada's allegations allege that the Indian government under Prime Minister Narendra Modi has orchestrated a transnational campaign of violence against dissidents or those it considers threats to the state.
In a statement on Monday, Trudeau said: “India has made a huge mistake in choosing to use its diplomats and organized crime to attack Canadians.”
A report in the Washington Post cited Canadian officials who said they had evidence that attacks and surveillance of Sikhs in Canada were directly authorized by Indian Home Minister Amit Shah, known as Modi's right-hand man.
Evidence of high-level involvement of Indians in criminal activities in Canada was presented to India's National Security Adviser Ajit Doval in a secret meeting over the weekend, where Doval denied any involvement in the violence, the report said.
Doval reportedly rejected allegations that India hired the Bishnoi gang to carry out targeted killings, but admitted that Bishnoi was “capable of planning violence from wherever he was imprisoned”.
According to the Indian Express, the US government has been part of recent discussions with India over allegations of Indian government involvement in international attacks on Canadian and US soil.
Last year, US investigators said they had foiled an assassination attempt on Sikh activist Gurpadwant Singh Pannu by an agent working for the Indian government. India said it had launched an investigation into the incident, and the US State Department said in a statement this week that Indian officials will travel to Washington DC on Tuesday to discuss the case.
