KEY POINTS
- Gurpatwant Singh Pannun warned Sikhs not to travel by the Indian carrier Air India on Nov. 19
- The Indian-born lawyer is the founder of the pro-Khalistani group Sikhs for Justice (SFJ)
- An emailed response said the Khalistani leader was warning about a “global blockade” of Air India and not a “bombing”
A prominent Sikh figure based in the U.S. has warned Sikhs not to travel aboard Air India flights later this month, as their lives “will be in danger.”
Gurpatwant Singh Pannun — an Indian-born lawyer who is the founder of the pro-Khalistani group Sikhs for Justice (SFJ) — released a video warning Sikhs not to travel by the Indian state carrier on Nov. 19, which he noted was the day India was hosting the final match of the Cricket World Cup 2023.
“We are asking the Sikh people to not fly via Air India on 19 November. There will be a global blockade. Do not travel by Air India or your life will be in danger,” Pannun said in the video that circulated on social media. “It is my warning to the government of India.”
He also claimed the airport named after former Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi in the Indian capital city of New Delhi would be changed to the names of the two Sikh bodyguards, who assassinated her in October 1984.
“It is the same day on which the final match of the World Terror Cup will be played. It will be shown to the world that a genocide of Sikhs happened in India and India did it. When we liberate Punjab, the name of these airports will be Shahid Beant Singh and Shahid Satwant Singh airport,” Pannun said.
“We are going to break the backbone of the Indian economic system and we are going to Balkanize India,” he added.
A response to International Business Times from Pannun’s email id, listed on the SFJ website, clarified the Khalistani leader was warning about a “global blockade” of Air India and not a “bombing.”
The statement said Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government wasn’t allowing the Sikh community to “democratically and peacefully” call for the “liberation of Punjab from Indian occupation.”
“As always, Indian media backed by Modi’s fascist regime is desensitizing the public to propel genocidal violence against the Sikh community, who are democratically and peacefully organizing Khalistan Referendum for liberation of Punjab from Indian occupation,” the statement said.
“The Indian fascist regimes representatives, lead [sic] by Dr. S Jaishankar along with RAW chief and NSA Chief Doval, will be held accountable for labeling SFJ’s Khalistan Referendum as Terrorism,” the statement added.
Pannun was previously declared a terrorist by the Indian government and faced more than 16 criminal cases in the Indian state of Punjab, including three for sedition. He fled to the U.S. in 2007, and was known to operate from the U.S. and Canada.
Over the years, Pannun has been building a network of pro-Khalistan supporters to advocate for the Khalistani movement, which demands a separate homeland for Sikhs in the state of Punjab. The movement is illegal in India, but not in the U.S. or Canada, where Pannun and other Khalistani separatists can openly make anti-India statements and be protected under the free speech laws.
In a video that went viral in September, Pannun had threatened Indo-Canadian Hindus, urging them to leave Canada. The threats were made against a backdrop of India-Canada ties reaching an all-time low following Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s allegations against India over the killing of Khalistani leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar.
Authorities in India had also pressed fresh charges against Pannun in September after several people in the country received calls playing a recorded message about the Cricket World Cup 2023 being the World Terror Cup, where SFJ would avenge the killing of Nijjar.
Although Pannun is a terrorist in the eyes of India, he is not seen as a threat by the West.
India has repeatedly asked Ottawa to take action against extreme Khalistan groups that thrive in Canada. But Trudeau’s response to New Delhi has largely been discourses on free speech.
“In my view, it is unlikely that Canada or its government will take any action on the Indian concerns via-a-vis pro-Khalistani elements including Pannun. This is because while India views this issue from terror and separatism lens, Canadian establishment perceives this as a freedom of speech and expression issue. Plus, Ottawa also prioritizes domestic political concerns over Indian sensitivities,” Sameer Patil, author and expert on Indian Defence and Security Policies and Counter-terrorism, told IBT.
“All these factors would mean that it won’t take any action against the pro-Khalistani elements who have made provocative statements and given calls for violence, openly from the Canadian soil,” Patil added.
Following the warnings made by Pannun, India’s High Commissioner to Ottawa, Sanjay Kumar Verma, told Indian news outlet Hindustan Times, “We shall take up the threat against Air India flights originating from and terminating in Canada, with the concerned Canadian authorities.”
