KHALISTAN EXTREMISM MONITOR
A project of the Institute for Conflict Management
A project of the Institute for Conflict Management
17-Jan-2022
A Delhi-based lawyer, Vineet Jindal, on January 17 registered a complaint against Sikhs For Justice (SFJ) Chief Gurpatwant Singh Pannun with the New York State Police's Commissioner, Keechant L Sewell. The complaint has been filed in connection with criminal assault, for attempting to wage a war among communities, the provocation for rioting, criminal conspiracy against the state of India, threat to the Prime Minister (PM) of India, and former Judges of the Supreme Court (SC) of India. The complaint stated that "Khalistani terror group 'Sikhs For Justice' has provoked masses to 'block' Prime Minister Narendra Modi and to remove the tricolor from the national capital on January 26, 2022, by offering a huge reward". It added that the SFJ's statements and acts are clearly meant to challenge the sovereignty and unity of India. It is an attempt to wage war amongst different communities and states.
10-May-2021
According a report in Newsweek, a weekly American magazine, New Delhi has prevented a United States (US) based Sikh advocacy group, Sikhs For Justice (SFJ) from providing financial support to the Indians who are unable to afford the high cost of oxygen. The SFJ said the Indian government blocked its COVID-19 relief website, oxygenfund.org, which was aimed at connecting the needy Indians with Sikhs in the US, Canada and other countries willing to donate money. Amid the block, according to the report, the group now operates through WhatsApp to reach the Indians in desperate need.
10-May-2021
According a report in Newsweek, a weekly American magazine, New Delhi has prevented a United States (US) based Sikh advocacy group, Sikhs For Justice (SFJ) from providing financial support to the Indians who are unable to afford the high cost of oxygen. The SFJ said the Indian government blocked its COVID-19 relief website, oxygenfund.org, which was aimed at connecting the needy Indians with Sikhs in the US, Canada and other countries willing to donate money. Amid the block, according to the report, the group now operates through WhatsApp to reach the Indians in desperate need.
23-Apr-2021
Several Indian-American Sikh, Muslim and Christian groups have applauded the US Commission for International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) for its latest report wherein it has recommended India be designated as a “country of particular concern (CPC)” for the alleged deterioration of religious freedom in the country. The coordinator of American Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (AGPC), Dr Pritpal Singh, said that “India, which claims to be the world’s largest democracy with a tradition of secular pluralism, is fast slipping into a majoritarian autocracy”.
21-Apr-2021
Indian-American Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthy has entered a statement into the Congressional record to recognize April as ‘Sikh appreciation and awareness month’ in his home state of Illinois. He underscored the importance of the recognition, saying there had been a disturbing rise in hate crimes and violent acts perpetrated against the Sikh-American community.
21-Apr-2021
In the wake of last week’s massacre of innocent people, including four Sikhs in a FedEx store in Indianapolis, United Sikhs, a United Nations (UN)-affiliated human rights advocacy organization, has called upon the US administration for adopting stricter gun control measures in the country. It called upon the Congress and the Executive branches at the state and federal levels to declare such types of crimes, including race and ethnicity, hate-based crimes, a crisis and a national emergency.
13-Mar-2021
The United Nations (UN) has received a USD 10,000 “donation” from the pro-Khalistan group Sikhs for Justice (SFJ), an outfit banned by India. SFJ is simultaneously lobbying the UN to set up a “commission of inquiry” to investigate alleged mistreatment of farmer protesters in India.A spokesperson for the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) in Geneva, said, “We confirm we received a contribution of USD 10,000 on 1 March from an individual representing the Sikhs for Justice (SFJ) group via our online donation function. In general, we do not decline online contributions, unless they are from groups or individuals listed on UN sanctions lists or the organisation/individual is engaged in activities manifestly contrary to the UN Charter or its principles.” US-based Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, SFJ’s general counsel, said a further USD 1.3 million had been pledged from the Sikh community to establish a UN commission of inquiry (CoI) “to investigate India’s use of violence and sedition charges against protesting farmers”.“As of my knowledge the UN has not established the commission. But we are pursuing the matter through the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights,” Pannun said.
23-Aug-2020
A Sikh man based in the US, Surjit Singh, alleged that the chief of pro-Khalistani extremist group Sikhs For Justice (SFJ), Gurpatwant Singh Pannun extorted $15,000 from a Dalit youth from Punjab. In a video shared on social media, Surjit Singh of California has alleged that Pannun cheated him of $15,000 which he had paid to him in an immigration case of a Dalit youth last year. Surjit Singh is heard saying in the video that he gave Pannun $15,000 for getting the US residency status for a Punjabi youth of the Valmiki community (Dalit). However, after Pannun received the money, he did not fulfill his commitment and did not deliver what he had promised. Surjit is also heard saying in the video that whatever Pannun has been doing, he does it only for money.
18-Aug-2020
A resolution introduced in the US Congress described Sikhs and Hindus in Afghanistan as “endangered minorities” and has sought to resettle these persecuted religious communities from the war-torn country to America. Introduced in the House of Representatives last week by Congresswoman Jackie Speier and co-sponsored by seven others, the resolution supports refugee protection for Sikhs and Hindus in Afghanistan, noting the “systematic religious persecution, discrimination and existential danger” faced by members of these communities.
05-Aug-2020
Khalistani and Kashmiri separatists staged a demonstration against India at Times Square, New York City on the occasion of the bhoomi pujan ceremony of the Ram temple in Ayodha. The coordinator of Sikh Coordination Committee, East Coast, Himmat Singh said that the protest was held against the Hindutva regime supported by the BJP. According to intelligence sources, during the sponsored programme, various Sikh and Kashmiri hardliners spewed venom against India and pro-Pakistan and Khalistan slogans were also raised.
05-Aug-2020
According to reports, only a handful of Pakistani protestors had gathered at the iconic Times Square for the anti-India demonstrations which were organized under the leadership of Himmat Singh, a pro-Khalistani Sikh, to counter the massive celebrations of Ram Temple foundation stone laying ceremony conducted by the Indian Diaspora. Around 20-25 people were gathered out of which only 2-3 were from Sikh community while the others were of Pakistani origin. They raised pro-Khalistan slogans with an aim to disrupt the celebrations of Indian community.
21-Jul-2020
The American Sikh Council (ASC) expressed extreme concerns about the illegal detention of innocent Sikh youth across the state of Punjab in the past two weeks. ASC mentioned that since late June 2020, over dozen Sikhs have been randomly and illegally arrested around Punjab including Lovepreet Singh of village Kaithal and Iqbalpreet Singh of Fatehgarh Sahib who are from poor working-class families who are not only trying to live honestly but volunteering for the welfare of others.
13-Jul-2020
The Sikh activist based in the United States and the chairman of Punjab Foundation, Sukhi Chahal, said that the pro-Khalistanis who are running a huge nexus in the Western countries are targeting the Sikh youth in the wake of providing them political asylum. Chahal said, "Youth coming from Punjab to the US, who is unemployed and uneducated, fall into their trap as they have run a massive propaganda. They radicalize these youth by luring them of providing help for political asylum". "The Punjabi youth, who have never witnessed the militancy period in Punjab, are being radicalized. These pro-Khalistanis provide them t-shirts of 'Referendum2020' and mislead them about forming Khalistan," he added. Sukhi said as a Sikh, he himself has witnessed that dark period of militancy and do not wish that time to come again in Punjab. "They are running their shops and it is Pakistan's ISI, which is behind them," claimed Chahal.
11-Jul-2020
Indian ambassador to the US Taranjit Singh Sandhu held a virtual interaction with members of the Sikh community in the United States, during which the participating diaspora leaders pledged to contribute to India’s development with particular focus on Punjab.
11-Jul-2020
The Sikh Coordination Committee East Coast (SCCEC) and American Gurdwara Parbhandak Committee (AGPC) at an emergency teleconference in New York decided to boycott the Indian politicians and stop funding them in elections besides continuing ban on Indian diplomats, political leaders and consular staff from speaking engagements in US Gurdwarason in protest against alleged recent arrests of Sikh youth in Punjab under Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA).
07-Jun-2020
In their emergency (virtual) meeting held in Fremont, CA, USA, around 55 Sikh Organisations from UK, Canada, Australia, Singapore and Mexico, condemned Akaal Takht Jathedar Harpreet Singh, who recently made calls of accepting Khalistan in India.
15-May-2020
The United States (US) presidential candidate and former Vice President, Joe Biden expressed concern over the targeting of Sikhs and Hindus in Afghanistan, especially after the attack on Gurudwara Har Rai Sahib, and suggested they will be given refugee status in the US if he was elected President.
30-Apr-2020
Indian-American Congressman Ro Khanna has urged the Trump Administration to give refugee status to the minority Sikh and Hindu families in Afghanistan who are increasingly facing persecution by terror outfits in the Asian country. Khanna, in a letter to the Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and the Acting Secretary of Homeland Security Chad F Wolf, expressed concerns about the health and safety of religious minorities in the war-ravaged nation where an approximately 200 Hindu and Sikh families left.
29-Apr-2020
Pro-Khalistan association, the World Sikh Parliament (WSP) observed ‘Khalistan Declaration Day’ hoisting Sikh flag along with the American flag in the city hall of Holyoke. Coordinator of WSP, Himmat Singh stated that, “The World Sikh Parliament team congratulates the global Sikh community on this 29th April which is the Khalistan Declaration Day.” “It is an honor for all the Sikhs living in America. The Sikh flag today waves along with the American flag. The World Sikh Parliament is able to get this opportunity because America symbolizes the belief to ‘Religious Freedom’ while respecting all religions. It’s a shame that India that claims to be the largest democracy but oppresses their minorities.”
26-Apr-2020
Pro-Khalistan association, the World Sikh Parliament has recently recognized April 29th as “Sikh Declaration of Independence Day”. It’s General Secretaries Manpreet Singh and Hardyal Singh issued the proclamation which contextualizes the historical significance of the declaration of independence made by the Sikh leadership on April 29,1986. The Proclamation also reaffirms the World Sikh Parliament’s commitment to the aspiration of sovereign statehood of the Sikh homeland, and for its delivery in accordance with the Sikh nation’s right to self-determination under international law.