Indian ‘spy network’ operates in US and Canada, Sikh separatist claims

Activist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun accused India of silencing dissidents abroad, but did not elaborate on his claims of an alleged spy network

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Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, a 56-year-old dual US-Canadian citizen, says India has a “spy network” in the US and Canada. Photo: Reuters

Published: 7:04pm, 28 Oct 2024

Canada and the US must get tougher on Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government for trying to silence dissidents on foreign soil, a controversial Sikh separatist who was the target of an alleged India-led murder plot said.

The US Justice Department has unsealed indictments against two Indian nationals in connection with an alleged plot to kill Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, a dual US-Canadian citizen, in New York. The two Indian accused included an ex-government official, who the indictment said worked as an intelligence officer at the time and had orchestrated the assassination plan.

Pannun said earlier this month that the Modi government should not be allowed to conduct hostile activity in foreign countries and said India’s consulates in the US and Canada were running a “spy network”, although he did not provide any proof.

The US and Canada “need to put their foot down that regimes like Modi’s … should not be allowed to come to America or Canada, challenge their sovereignty and get away with it. They need to put their foot down and close [the consulates] permanently,” he said.

Pannun did not elaborate on the alleged spy network. Similar assertions have been made by Sikh activists in America and Canada.

India’s foreign ministry did not respond to questions regarding Pannun’s allegations. India, where Pannun was born, has labelled him a terrorist since 2020.