Canada is home to about 770,000 Sikhs. Some of them support the Sikh independence movement as it seeks to create a sovereign homeland known as Khalistan, a proposal opposed by the Indian government
Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly has vowed to safeguard Indian diplomats in Canada, as posters circulating for secessionist Khalistan rallies at Delhi’s Vancouver and Toronto consulates feature the phrase “Kill India” and label its senior diplomats in this country as “killers”, reported theglobeandmail.com.
Posters for Saturday’s “Khalistan Freedom” rallies that are scheduled to end at India’s consulates in Toronto and Vancouver feature a pen piercing a rifle and photos of Sanjay Kumar Verma, India’s high commissioner to Canada, as well as its two consuls-general, with a caption identifying them as the “killers” of a Surrey, B.C., man who also advocated for Sikh independence.
Canada is home to about 770,000 Sikhs. Some of them support the Sikh independence movement as it seeks to create a sovereign homeland known as Khalistan, a proposal opposed by the Indian government.
Gurpatwant Pannun, the New York-based general counsel for Sikhs for Justice, a secessionist group, said in an interview that he made the posters and that “Kill India” is a reference to his group’s desire to see the Indian state of Punjab break off from India and form its own country. He said the phrase is not intended to incite violence
Verma, in an interview, said the posters indicate a threat to the safety of Indian diplomats in Canada and he wants Canada to prevent the rallies from taking place. “They are not demonstrators,” he said. “They are thugs.” He said India has raised its concerns about the July 8 rallies to various levels of the federal government. “I want them to stop the hate speech. I want them to stop the act of hate,” Mr. Verma said of the Canadian government.
Gurpatwant Pannun, the New York-based general counsel for Sikhs for Justice, a secessionist group, said in an interview that he made the posters and that “Kill India” is a reference to his group’s desire to see the Indian state of Punjab break off from India and form its own country. He said the phrase is not intended to incite violence.
His group has been conducting a referendum on Punjab independence, taking the ballot to multiple countries around the world where the Indian diaspora live, as part of a global campaign on the matter. Pannun defended labelling the Indian diplomats as killers because he believes India is responsible for the June shooting death in Surrey, B.C., of Hardeep Singh Nijjar.
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