Carney’s G7 invitation to Modi draws outrage from Sikhs after evidence of India’s role in assassination of Canadian in BC

While Canadian law enforcement agencies investigate the brazen 2023 assassination of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a Sikh-Canadian activist who organized a non-binding global referendum on the creation of a separate Sikh nation to be carved out of India, Prime Minister Mark Carney’s invitation to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the upcoming G7 summit in Kananaskis has drawn widespread criticism.

In line with the foreign policy position established by former prime minister Justin Trudeau, who publicly voiced his criticism of the Indian government, Modi was initially not on the list of invitees to the G7 summit.  Carney then decided to welcome his controversial Indian counterpart, who has been widely condemned for alleged human rights violations against religious minorities including frequently reported draconian policies targeting India’s 200 million Muslims. 

Modi’s BJP is an openly nationalist political party that believes Hindu identity in India is paramount. 

Despite the ongoing RCMP probe of Nijjar’s murder, and Trudeau’s acknowledgement that BJP government officials were involved in the assassination, following a shocking U.S. Department of Justice indictment filled with evidence that Modi’s government was part of the plot to murder Nijjar and another plan to kill a dual Canadian-American citizen and Sikh activist in New York (the criminal plot was foiled by U.S. law enforcement agencies), Prime Minister Carney defended the decision to include Modi in the upcoming meetings with global leaders. In a June 6 press conference he said India plays a central role in global supply chains.  

India’s government has denied any involvement in the activities highlighted in evidence brought forward by the U.S. DOJ and in Canada by the RCMP.

"I mean hearing Prime Minister Carney's remarks, it seems as though he is saying that India is too big to be held accountable and that he's willing to trade the rule of law and Canadian sovereignty for supply chains,” Balpreet Singh, legal counsel and spokesperson for the World Sikh Organization (WSO) of Canada, said. "It was completely insensitive to the concerns of the Sikh community here in Canada."

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney has come under fire for ignoring Canadian foreign policy that prioritizes human rights, after he invited Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the G7 gathering in Alberta this coming week.

 (Government of Canada)

In an interview with The Pointer, Singh said the current Liberal administration’s diplomatic policy under Carney’s leadership has shocked the entire community.

"I think it's disappointing. I think that any reset in relations has to be principled. That means India has to acknowledge its role and agree not to engage in further foreign interference and transnational oppression," he said. "It should also cooperate with the ongoing criminal investigations. But here it seems to be a carte blanche reset, which is absolutely unacceptable, and it puts Canadians at risk."

Despite knowing that U.S. and Canadian evidence points directly to the BJP’s orchestration of Nijjar’s assassination, Carney, while being questioned by the media, refused to clarify whether he believed the Modi-led BJP was behind the murder. Instead, he broke from the messaging of Trudeau, who did not shy away from publicly condemning the Indian government for its alleged involvement. “It’s not appropriate to comment on the ongoing legal process,” Carney said. 

It drew more questions. 

"I gave you an answer that is appropriate to someone in my position about an ongoing legal process in which, including which federal authorities are directly involved, I will give you the same answer to any legal process."

Singh said Carney sounded more like a businessman than a leader committed to core Canadian values and the safety of a community that has faced widespread challenges stemming from religious persecution.

"This feels like a betrayal to the Canadian Sikh community," he said. "But it's also a betrayal of Canadian values, the rule of law, and overall, it's just a complete turnaround from the position that prime minister Trudeau had taken, which was a principled and right position."

The U.S. Justice Department filed its harrowing indictment filled with detailed evidence in 2023, including wire tap communications and other surveillance material, directly linking the Indian government to the assassination of Mr. Nijjar in Surrey in 2023 and a plot to kill Canadian-American dual citizen Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, the man who has led the global referendum movement to create an independent Sikh nation, known as Khalistan, carved from the state of Punjab in India where the religion’s followers make up the majority.

A second version of the indictment by the U.S. Justice Department, published last year, included more details, implicating the Indian government.

Murder-for-hire and money laundering charges were laid against Vikash Yadav, 39, an agent of the Indian government. He allegedly directed from India the thwarted attempt to assassinate Pannun in New York City.

“The defendant, an Indian government employee, allegedly conspired with a criminal associate and attempted to assassinate a U.S. citizen on American soil for exercising their First Amendment rights,” former FBI director Christopher Wray said in October last year, when the indictment was made public. New details of the plot, including the name of the Indian government agent, were included in the latest charges.

“The FBI will not tolerate acts of violence or other efforts to retaliate against those residing in the U.S. for exercising their constitutionally protected rights. We are committed to working with our partners to detect, disrupt, and hold accountable foreign nationals or others who seek to engage in such acts of transnational repression.”

The highest-ranking American criminal justice official at the time, former attorney general Merrick B. Garland, offered harsh words for the Modi government. 

“The Justice Department will be relentless in holding accountable any person — regardless of their position or proximity to power — who seeks to harm and silence American citizens. As alleged, last year, we foiled an attempt by Vikash Yadav, an Indian government employee, and his co-conspirator, Nikhil Gupta, to assassinate an American citizen on U.S. soil. Today’s charges demonstrate that the Justice Department will not tolerate attempts to target and endanger Americans and to undermine the rights to which every U.S. citizen is entitled.”

Gurpatwant Singh Pannun was the target of an alleged Indian government assassination plot to eliminate North American Sikh activists.

(Submitted)

Pannun is the leader of an organization called Sikhs for Justice, and has led the global referendum movement, which saw Sikhs cast ballots in Canadian cities, including Brampton, last year.

Nijjar was his close associate.

The U.S. indictment, which was peppered with quotes from wire tap and other surveillance material, clearly linked his assassination with the Indian agent’s attempt to kill Pannun: “Nijjar was an associate of the victim (the word used to describe Pannun throughout the unsealed document)... just hours after the Nijjar murder, YADAV sent GUPTA a video clip that showed Nijjar’s bloody body slumped in his (Nijjar’s) vehicle.” 

Nijjar was described as one of the “targets” of the broader plot that involved Pannun. Nikhil Gupta is the man now in American custody after his extradition from the Czech Republic; he was allegedly hired by Yadav, the Indian government agent, to arrange the North American assassinations and was charged in June with murder-for-hire. Yadav, according to the indictment, arranged to have Indian criminal charges against Gupta wiped away in exchange for organizing assassinations in Canada and the U.S.

“The boss”, Yadav told Gupta, had cleared his criminal problems in India. “Nobody will ever bother you again,” the Indian government agent told Gupta, according to the surveillance transcripts in the indictment.

“We will be needing one good team in Canada,” Gupta then allegedly told one of the co-conspirators, describing Mr. Nijjar as a “big target” in Canada.

After receiving the video clip from Yadav showing Nijjar’s bloodied body in his car, and instructions from the Indian agent to have Pannun killed immediately, Gupta, according to the surveillance material, told a hitman he hired, that before June 29, 2023, “we have to finish four jobs”, Pannun’s assassination in the U.S. “and three in Canada”.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has denied any Indian government involvement in the 2023 assassination of Canadian Hardeep Singh Nijjar.

(WikiCommons)

“Last year, this office charged Nikhil Gupta for conspiring to assassinate a U.S. citizen of Indian origin on U.S. soil,” former U.S. attorney Damian Williams said after more information came forward. “But, as alleged, Gupta did not work alone. Today, we announce charges against an Indian government employee, Vikash Yadav, who orchestrated the plot from India and directed Gupta to hire a hitman to murder the victim (Pannun). The right to exercise free speech is foundational to our democracy and predicated on the notion that we can do so without fear of violence or reprisal, including from beyond our borders. Let this case be a warning to all those who would seek to harm and silence U.S. citizens: we will hold you accountable, no matter who and where you are.” 

Sikhs across Canada are now questioning Carney’s decision to move away from Trudeau’s stance, while failing to acknowledge what Canadian law enforcement and intelligence experts have made clear, that India is actively and covertly interfering in politics here while targeting Canadians.

On June 6, the Prime Minister's Office issued a press release stating that bilateral talks have been held between both leaders, and Carney has extended an invitation to Modi for the G7 summit, while discussing the key security issues that have divided the nations. Both countries agreed to proceed with law enforcement dialogue, strengthening economic and cultural ties.

For the G7 summit, Canada is welcoming the leaders of the seven biggest economies in the World, including Italy, Germany, France, the United Kingdom and the United States. The three-point agenda of the conference laid out the priorities: establishing peace by protecting Canadian and global communities from foreign interference and transnational crime; strengthening joint efforts to combat wildfires; fortifying critical mineral supply chains and using artificial intelligence to unleash economic growth; and catalyzing private investment to build stronger infrastructure, create higher-paying jobs and open dynamic markets. 

In response to Carney’s invitation, Modi congratulated him for the recent election win. In a press release put out by the Indian government ahead of the G7 gathering, the same agenda was highlighted, except for the focus on foreign interference and transnational oppression. 

The Pointer sent questions to the Prime Minister’s Office regarding the evidence linking the Indian government to Mr. Nijjar’s assassination. 

As of publication no response was received.

In October, the RCMP published a troubling investigation report that revealed the danger Canadian Sikhs face at the hands of the Indian government. The Mounties described “criminal activity orchestrated by agents of the Government of India, and consequential threats to the safety and security of Canadians and individuals living in Canada.”

While specifics of the investigation were left out, the RCMP provided harrowing information about India’s covert activities in Canada. 

“Over the past few years, and more recently, law enforcement agencies in Canada, including the RCMP, have successfully investigated and charged a significant number of individuals for their direct involvement in homicides, extortions and other criminal acts of violence,” RCMP officials revealed last year.

“In addition, there has been well over a dozen credible and imminent threats to life which have led to the conduct of Duty to Warn by law enforcement with members of the South Asian community, and specifically members of the pro-Khalistan movement.”

In solidarity with the Sikh community, Trudeau publicly voiced his alarm over the RCMP evidence linking India’s government to the threats and violence described by Canadian law enforcement.

“We will never tolerate the involvement of a foreign government threatening and killing Canadian citizens on Canadian soil—a deeply unacceptable violation of Canada’s sovereignty and of international law,” he said.

The information laid out by the Mounties sent shockwaves from Ottawa to New Delhi, as Canada expelled six Indian diplomats, including the highest-ranking official. The RCMP Commissioner Michael Duheme, together with Assistant Commissioner Brigitte Gauvin, stated that the “Bishnoi gang” has connections to the Indian government and is involved in criminal acts, including the murder of Sikh activists.

“I won’t be providing any further details in regard to the specificity of those investigations, but what we have seen from an RCMP perspective is the use of organized crime elements,” Gauvin detailed. “And I will say… it’s been publicly attributed and claimed by one organized crime group in particular, which is the Bishnoi group.”

“That’s what we are seeing here in Canada, and we believe that that group is connected to agents of the government of India.”

Global News reported on June 12 that a suspected Indian government agent linked with the criminal Bishnoi gang, which the RCMP linked to the Indian government, has been monitoring the movements of Jagmeet Singh, the former NDP leader who has been openly critical of India’s BJP government. 

Singh was placed under RCMP protection for 18 months beginning in late 2023, which he revealed during the 2025 federal election campaign.

The WSO’s Balpreet Singh called for the federal government to withdraw Modi’s invitation until he assures full cooperation with Canadian law enforcement authorities.

"So let it sink in—India targeted a Canadian politician on Canadian soil. That's absolutely unprecedented, as far as we're concerned, that's an act of war. And that raises a question in our community: if Jagmeet Singh, who is the highest profile Sikh in Canada, isn't safe, then what does that mean for the rest of us?" Singh said while addressing media in Ottawa.

"And despite all of this, Prime Minister Mark Carney has invited Narendra Modi to the G7 summit without any assurances that India will stop targeting Canadian Sikhs, without any cooperation on the ongoing criminal investigations and without a single public concession, without anything about foreign interference that targets our electoral systems, our governments, our citizens. If targeting a Canadian political leader on Canadian soil isn't enough to be barred from entering Canada, then where is our red line? Where do we draw that line? In fact, it seems there is no red line when it comes to our community. It's telling Sikh Canadians that our lives simply don't matter.”

He added that "the invitation to Narendra Modi…should be withdrawn unless India cooperates with Canadian law enforcement in the ongoing investigations and pledges to no longer interfere in Canada and no longer targets Sikhs in Canada."

Similar concerns have also been raised by two Liberal MPs from British Columbia. Sukh Dhaliwal met with Carney on Wednesday and informed him that a large group of community members are unhappy with his decision. Gurbux Saini accused Carney of undermining Canada’s reputation as a champion of human rights. 

Brampton Liberal MP and new Minister of International Trade, Maninder Sidhu, walked the fence when addressing the decision to invite Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the G7 meeting. 

(Alexis Wright/The Pointer)

Brampton Liberal MP Maninder Sidhu, the Minister of International Trade, also said many of his constituents questioned Carney’s decision, but added that during the current climate of economic uncertainty both countries should collaborate and work through the current divisions over India’s alleged conduct.     

The same Indian criminal ring implicated in the allegations of a BJP plot to assassinate Sikhs, the Bishnoi group, is also allegedly involved in the broad daylight murder of a Brampton businessman, Harjeet Singh Dhadda, last month in a Mississauga parking lot. He was shot multiple times. According to media reports, his daughter said he was facing multiple threats from extortionists demanding $500,000, or he would be killed. She also said that her father notified law enforcement about the threats multiple times. 

The Times of India has reported that the Bishnoi group has claimed responsibility for the killing. Peel Police have charged two individuals, Aman Aman and Digvijay Digvijay, with first-degree murder in connection with Dhadda’s death. Both men were arrested in Delta, British Columbia, with the assistance of local police.

Carney’s silence and olive branch to Modi have caused consternation among many Sikhs in Canada, especially with the history between his Liberal party and the community which has been one of the largest sources of campaign contributions, and successful candidates.

"So in the immediacy (when Modi was invited), there was anger, and, you know, negative reaction, and my personal reaction, was I wasn't angry. I personally wasn't angry," Kuljeet Singh, a representative of Sikhs for Justice, which has a large presence in Brampton and was the main organization behind the local Sikh referendum effort, tells The Pointer.

"And then when you sit with it, and you think about it, you figure out that, okay, there are multiple things happening all around the world, and there are multiple wars taking place currently, and the potential for war to break out in other places, and leaders have to meet with their adversaries. So you understand, from an international perspective, that governments will have to meet with these leaders in order to get their point across and things of that nature. The second point to that is I looked at it as an opportunity. This new government, whether they continue talks, or, you know, continue dialogue…it gives the Sikhs an opportunity to openly challenge Modi in front of the world."

He continued. "So when we talk about the G7 we're talking about the seven most affluent countries in the world from a GDP economic standpoint, correct, and the majority of those countries are from the west who have openly showed support for freedom of speech, right to self determination, freedom of expression and allowing you to practice your faith in those countries openly, without being harassed or anything like that. So when you have G7 nations, the majority of which practice those values, the values of the west, you understand that India being an ancillary invite, because they're not part of the G7, not only will they be exposed for what they did to the Sikhs and targeting Sikh activists on Canadian soil, and also trying to replicate what they had done on Canadian soil in the U.S., with the targeting of Sikhs for Justice General Council, Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, but this will all be exposed."

The Pointer reached out to all five Liberal Brampton MPs (four are Sikh) for a comment on Carney’s decision to invite Modi. None responded.

Email: [email protected]

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