Lawrence Bishnoi, the imprisoned head of an Indian crime syndicate, has been charged with the murder of a Khalistan separatist leader
The US has charged the imprisoned head of an Indian crime syndicate and his ‘North American deputy’ with ordering a hit on a Khalistan separatist leader in Canada in 2023.
The federal indictment is a blow to Canada as it previously accused Indian intelligence agencies of playing a role in the killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, plunging relations between Ottawa and New Delhi into a crisis.
The indictment alleges that Bishnoi and Satinderjeet Singh ordered the shooting of Nijjar outside a Sikh temple in the Vancouver suburb of Surrey, British Columbia on June 18, 2023.
In May, 2024, Canadian police arrested and charged four Indian nationals over shooting.
The assassination triggered a diplomatic crisis after then-Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said the Canadian authorities were “actively pursuing credible allegations” linking Indian government agents to the murder. New Delhi rejected the claim as absurd.
Canadian police accused Indian intelligence agencies of using Bishnoi gang members to carry out killings and violent intimidation of supporters of the Khalistan Movement, which seeks to carve out an independent state for Sikhs in India’s Punjab.
New Delhi has denied the charges and accused Ottawa of ignoring extradition requests for Bishnoi gang members. The US indictment charging Bishnoi and Singh does not mention any role of the Indian government in the murder plot, Reuters reported.
The indictment says Bishnoi, who is in a Delhi jail, directed the operation from there using smuggled cellphones. Bishnoi has also been charged with providing a co-conspirator with a photograph and multiple addresses of Nijjar to facilitate the killing.
Singh allegedly directed the North American operations of the criminal group, named as the ‘Lawrence Bishnoi Organized Crime Group’. The FBI announced a $50,000 reward for information leading to Singh’s arrest.
Hours after the US indictment, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) said there is “no evidence to suggest” that Indian officials were linked to the killing. “Nothing has come out to link the Indian government,” RCMP Deputy Commissioner Lisa Moreland told Canadian public broadcaster CBC News.
The row led to the mutual expulsions of top diplomats in 2024.
India and Canada agreed to reset bilateral ties after years of tensions in June last year, after Trudeau resigned following low approval ratings and mounting pressure from within his party. In September, Canada designated the Bishnoi gang as a ‘terrorist entity’.
Bilateral ties between Ottawa and New Delhi received a boost when Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney visited India in February. He also initiated talks on a trade deal, which is expected to be completed by November.
Carney’s stance has drawn the ire of some Sikh groups. They have accused Ottawa of failing to hold India accountable to safeguard Sikh Canadians from “foreign interference and transnational repression.”
