Khalistani terrorist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun has warned India of a Hamas-like attack in a new video.
Pannun, a designated terrorist, warned that the Indian government's policies regarding Punjab would inspire a reaction similar to the attack of Hamas on Israel. He also said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi would be responsible for any such reaction.
Pannun was referring to the all-out offensive mounted by Hamas on Israel on Sunday. At least 1,000 people have been killed and at least 2,800 have been injured in the attack on Israel.
Pannun of the Sikhs for Justice (SFJ), which the Indian government has declared as an unlawful organisation, has repeatedly issued threatening videos for India and Hindus living abroad as part of his pursuit of the Khalistan's cause.
In the latest video that has surfaced on social media, Pannun says, "Modi, learn from Israel-Palestine conflict. People under occupation from Punjab to Palestine will react and violence begets violence. If India is going to keep occupying Punjab, there will be a reaction and, Modi and India, you will be responsible. SFJ believes in ballot. SFJ believes in vote. Liberation of Punjab is on the cards. India, choice is yours: ballot or bullet."
Pannun is part of the Khalistan movement that seeks to carve out a separate nation for Sikhs out of India. For decades, the movement waged a bloody insurgency in India that finally ebbed in the 1990s. While the insurgency ebbed in India in the 1990s, the movement found strong pockets of influence abroad, including in Canada where Khalistan terrorist organisations, terrorist leaders, and organised crime syndicates operating against India have found a safe haven.
From Canada, these Khalistani elements have continued to indulge in anti-India activities, which have come to the fore lately after Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau last month accused India of being "potentially" behind the killing of a Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar, who was shot dead in Canada's British Columbia province in June. India has forcefully rejected Trudeau's claims.
After Trudeau made the claim, Pannun ramped up his rhetoric and issued an open threat against the Hindus in Canada, asking them to leave the country. The threat was part of the long-running Khalistan campaign in Canada in which Hindu temples were repeatedly vandalised and messages calling for the killing of Indian diplomats were put up. Amid all of these incidents, the Canadian authorities under Trudeau did little.
Trudeau's allegations plunged the India-Canada relations to a new low. In addition to accusing India of a potential role in the killing of Nijjar, a designated terrorist, Trudeau's government also expelled a senior Indian diplomat posted in Canada and outed him publicly as an Indian intelligence agency's station chief in the country. In a tit for tat reaction, India also expelled a Canadian diplomat posted in India, who has since been identified as Olivier Sylvester, the station chief of Canadian intelligence in India. Moreover, India has also suspended visa services for Canadian nationals.
Upping the ante on Canada, which under Trudeau has failed to provide security to Indian missions in Canada and curtail open threats against Indian diplomats posted in the country, India has also asked Canada to reduce its diplomatic presence in India by withdrawing 41 diplomats.
For years, the India-Canada relations have been strained because of the haven that the Khalistan movement has found there. Such tensions have increased since Trudeau became the Prime Minister of Canada as the Khalistan movement and Khalistan terrorist leaders like Nijjar, who headed the designated terrorist organisation Khalistan Tiger Force (KTF), have found newfound support from him, his government, and his allies. Trudeau and his ministers and allies have attended Khalistani events and a Khalistani convicted for an attempted murder of an Indian minister was even invited to an event hosted by Trudeau in India during his disastrous visit in 2018.
The India-Canada tensions were also visible during the G20 Summit last month when Trudeau was largely snubbed by India. He had a tense meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. In a particularly harsh readout, the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) said that Modi "conveyed our strong concerns about continuing anti-India activities of extremist elements in Canada".
"They are promoting secessionism and inciting violence against Indian diplomats, damaging diplomatic premises, and threatening the Indian community in Canada and their places of worship. The nexus of such forces with organized crime, drug syndicates and human trafficking should be a concern for Canada as well. It is essential for the two countries to cooperate in dealing with such threats," said the readout further.
Following Trudeau's claim of Indian involvement in Khalistani terrorist Nijjar's killing, India issued an advisory warning of "politically-condoned" anti-India activities in Canada. The phrase "politically-condoned" reflects the support that the Khalistan movement and anti-India elements in Canada receive from Trudeau, his party and allies, and his government.
