Canadian police have made an arrest in connection with the fatal 2023 shooting that killed prominent Canadian Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar, months after authorities accused Indian government agents of involvement in the killing.
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) in Canada’s westernmost province of British Columbia said Friday afternoon that three people had been arrested as part of the ongoing investigation into Nijjar’s murder.
Three people – all Indian nationals – were arrested in Edmonton, Alberta, and charged with first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder, RCMP Inspector Mandeep Mooker told reporters.
“This investigation does not stop there. “We are aware that other individuals may have played a role in this murder, and we remain focused on locating and arresting each of these individuals,” Mooker said.
He added that police were “investigating whether there was any connection with the Indian government.”
“However, as I said, the investigation is ongoing and I have no information on this at this time.”
Nijjar was shot dead on June 18, 2023, outside a Sikh temple in Surrey, British Columbia, sparking widespread condemnation.
A few months later, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said his country’s security agencies were investigating “credible allegations of possible links” between Indian government agents and Nijjar’s assassination.
“The involvement of a foreign government in the murder of Canadian citizens on Canadian soil constitutes an unacceptable violation of our sovereignty,” Trudeau said in a speech to the Canadian Parliament last September.
“I continue to urge the Indian government to work with Canada to resolve this issue.”
His remarks sparked a strong reaction from India, which called the allegations “absurd” and politically motivated. New Delhi also accused Canada of not doing enough to end anti-Indian activism and “Sikh extremism.”
But Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government has long been accused of targeting political opponents, journalists and minority religious groups, including Muslims and Sikhs, in what human rights groups say is a continued attempt to silence dissent.
At the time of Nijjar’s murder, tensions were rising between Canada and India over the Sikh campaign for a sovereign state in the Punjab region of India. The campaign, known as the Khalistan movement, has supporters in Canada.
Nijjar was the president of the Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdwara, the temple where he was killed. He is a supporter of Khalistan.
“Active police action”
When asked to comment on Friday’s reported arrest in the case, Canadian Public Safety Minister Dominic LeBlanc referred to a question from an RCMP reporter.
“You understand that the developments surrounding the murder of Canadian citizen, Mr. Nijjar, are part of an ongoing police operation. This operation starts today. “This is still an active police operation,” LeBlanc said in Ottawa.
RCMP identified the three men arrested Friday as Kamalpreet Singh, Karanpreet Singh and Karan Brar.
Police Inspector Mooker said the three men were not residents of Canada and had resided in the country for three to five years.
CBC News reported earlier today that, according to anonymous sources, “members of the squadron were believed to have played various roles as shooters, drivers and scouts” on the day of Nijjar’s death.
“Sources say investigators identified suspected commando members in Canada several months ago and continue to monitor them closely,” the Canadian television channel said.
The Indian High Commission in Ottawa did not immediately respond to Al Jazeera’s request for comment on Friday afternoon.
Reported threats
Nijjar’s killing continues to raise questions about allegations of foreign interference by India, particularly among the diaspora Sikh community in Canada, the United States and other countries.
In September, Moninder Singh of the British Columbia Gurdwara Council told Al Jazeera that he was among five Sikh leaders – including Nijjar – who were warned by the RCMP’s national security division in 2022 about threats against their life.
On Friday, Danish Singh, president of the Canadian Sikh World Organization advocacy group, welcomed the arrest in Nijjar’s case, but said the arrest also raised new questions.
“While the arrest of the attack team is important, what is even more important is to identify and bring to justice those who orchestrated this operation,” Singh said in his speech. statementaccused the Indian government of being involved in this matter.
Following Nijjar’s death, reports also surfaced of alleged assassination plots against other prominent Sikh separatist leaders in the United States. At the end of November, the US Department of Justice accusations made public against Indian citizen Nikhil Gupta, 52 years old.
Gupta is accused of participating in the foiled assassination attempt against U.S. citizen Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, along with Indian government employees and others.
Earlier this week, the Washington Post reported that U.S. intelligence agencies had determined that the operation targeting Pannun was approved by the head of India’s foreign intelligence agency at the time, known as RAW.
According to media reports, the Indian government has dismissed the allegations as “baseless” and “baseless”.
On Monday, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre called the Washington Post report “serious.”
“The Indian government has made it clear to us that it takes this matter seriously and will investigate it, and we expect accountability from the government,” Jean-Pierre told reporters at a news conference.
He added that Washington would continue to express its concerns with New Delhi.
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