Indian diplomats involved in 'violent extremism' — Canada police

A furious statement from Canadian police has accused Indian diplomats and consular officials based in Canada of involvement into "violent extremism", "homicides", "use of organised crime" and "interference into democratic processes," hours after Canada and India expelled each other's diplomats.

Monday's statement from the Royal Canadian Mounted Police [RCMP], the national police service of Canada, came after Canada and India each banished six diplomats in tit-for-tat moves as part of an escalating dispute over the June 2023 assassination of a Sikh activist in Canada that Ottawa blames on Indian government agents, a claim New Delhi rejects.

"An extraordinary situation is compelling us to speak about what we have discovered in our multiple ongoing investigations into the involvement of agents of the Government of India in serious criminal activity in Canada," RCMP said in a statement.

RCMP said over the past few years Canadian law enforcement agencies have successfully investigated and charged a significant number of individuals for their direct involvement in homicides, extortions and other criminal acts of violence.

It said there has been "over a dozen credible and imminent threats to life" which led Canada to warn members of its South Asian community, and specifically members of the pro-Khalistan movement, regarding threat to their lives.

"In February 2024, the RCMP created a multidisciplinary team to investigate and coordinate efforts to combat this threat. The team has learned a significant amount of information about the breadth and depth of 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," the national police force said.

RCMP added: "We reached a point where we felt it was imperative to confront the Government of India and inform the public about some very serious findings that have been uncovered through our investigations."

The Canadian police said Deputy Commissioner of Federal Policing, Mark Flynn, earlier this week, made attempts to meet with his Indian law enforcement counterparts to discuss violent extremism occurring in Canada and India, and present evidence pertaining to agents of the Government of India's involvement in serious criminal activity in Canada.

"These attempts were unsuccessful," it said.

Evidence of Indian diplomats' clandestine activities

Investigations revealed that Indian diplomats and consular officials based in Canada leveraged their official positions to engage in clandestine activities, such as collecting information for the government of India, either directly or through their proxies, and other individuals who acted voluntarily or through coercion, the Canadian police said.

"Evidence also shows that a wide variety of entities in Canada and abroad have been used by agents of the Government of India to collect information. Some of these individuals and businesses were coerced and threatened into working for the Government of India. The information collected for the Government of India is then used to target members of the South Asian community," Canadian police added.

RCMP said the evidence was "presented directly" to the Indian government officials, urging their cooperation in stemming the violence and "requesting our law enforcement agencies work together to address these issues."

The Canadian police said it recognises the concern and fear people might be feeling "when seeing this news and we recognise that South Asians are victims of the activities we're investigating."

"We want to assure all Canadians that their safety and security is at the forefront of everything we do and we urge the public and South Asian communities to remain calm and give law enforcement and Canadian officials time to continue discussions."

Assassination plots in Pakistan, US, Canada

Indian security and intelligence branches have long been active in South Asia and are suspected in a number of killings in Pakistan including many pro-Kashmir independence activists in recent months.

Earlier this year, Pakistani investigators told the Guardian that some 20 assassinations since 2020 had been orchestrated by Indian intelligence sleeper cells, mostly allegedly operating out of the UAE.

Canada and US have also found "Indian government role" in multiple assassination plots.

Canada says Indian government agents had role into the murder of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, 45, outside a Sikh temple in June last year.

Nijjar — who immigrated to Canada in 1997 and became a citizen in 2015 — had advocated for a separate Sikh state, known as Khalistan, carved out of India's Punjab state.

Among others, Canada had identified Indian High Commissioner, Sanjay Kumar Verma, and other diplomats as "persons of interest" in its investigation. New Delhi rejects Ottawa's accusations.

Canada is home to the largest number of Sikhs outside their home state of Punjab in northern India.

In November last year, the US government foiled a plot to assassinate a prominent Sikh separatist leader in New York, just days after another activist's killing, which was meant to precede a string of other politically motivated murders in the US and Canada.

After Nijjar's killing on June 18, one of the men charged with orchestrating the planned assassinations told a person he had hired as a hitman that he should act urgently to kill another activist, Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, in US, American prosecutors said at the time.

The US has charged Indian man Nikhil Gupta and says the plot to kill Pannun was directed by an official in the Indian government, described as a "senior field officer" with responsibilities in security management and intelligence.

Gupta, who was arrested in Prague and brought to New York, has pleaded not guilty.

India, which has labelled Pannun, as a "terrorist" says it has been cooperating with US into the investigations. Pannun recently told US media that Biden administration's silent diplomacy has not deterred India's right-wing PM Narendra Modi, saying New Delhi still wants him dead.