In 1985, a year after Indira Gandhi assassination and anti-Sikh pogrom, Indian intelligence officer M.K. Dhar, posted at the High Commission in Ontario, learned through his network that Babbar Khalsa was planning something "spectacular." Key figures including Ripudaman Singh, Kulwant Singh Nagar, S.P.S. Gill, A.S. Bagri, and Talvinder Singh Parmar were orchestrating the operation.
Air India Flight AI-182, en route from Toronto-London-New Delhi-Bombay, suddenly disappeared from radar over the Atlantic Ocean. The bomb killed all 329 aboard, with most bodies and wreckage unrecoverable from the ocean depths.
Despite arrests, most perpetrators were released due to insufficient evidence. Bagri was freed in Germany, while others escaped conviction in Canada. The lack of substantiated evidence allowed the masterminds to walk free, leaving victims' families without closure.
This year, two gunmen killed Ripudaman Singh in Canada, where he had lived freely despite Kanishka allegations. RCMP investigations continue, though some Khalistan factions blame India while Singh's son sees no such connection.
Dhar had cultivated sources within Khalistan factions in gurdwaras and Sikh neighborhoods. One contact, Kuldeep Singh Kohli—a Bengali-speaking Sikh from West Bengal settled in Winnipeg—remained caustic toward India with unbreakable commitment to Khalistan. His fiery rhetoric was last heard at the 1990 World Sikh Conference, demonstrating the enduring radical sentiment that enabled such terrorist acts.
In 1986, General Vaidya, the retired Chief of the Army Staff (COAS) who led the Blue Star Operation was assassinated in Pune by Khalistan Commando Force. H.S. Jinda and Sukdev Singh Sukha were involved in the killing. Jinda was also responsible for assassinating Congress leader Lalit Maken and Arjan Das (involved in the Sikh carnage in Delhi), and looted Punjab National Bank in Ludhiana in what was regarded as India's biggest bank dacoity worth approximately INR 57 million. Both were arrested and hanged at Pune's Yerawada prison in 1991.
While Jinda and Sukha were imprisoned, the Khalistan Commando Force (KCF) hatched a plan to kill Julio Ribeiro, India's ambassador to Romania and former Punjab police chief during the height of militancy. When R&AW and other intelligence organizations foiled this plot, KCF instead kidnapped Romanian Chargé d'Affaires Liviu Radu from Delhi in 1991. Radu was held for 49 days as KCF demanded the release of Khalistan militants, especially Vaidya's murderers (who were involved in numerous other crimes). However, neither international media interest nor Indian government yielded to demands, and the diplomat was ultimately released.
R&AW veteran B. Raman mentions in his book 'Kaoboys' how in the 1990s, Manjit Singh and Lal Singh were arrested by Gujarat police upon returning from Pakistan. The duo had cases pending in the USA and Canada. Raman contacted Canadian intelligence and CIA, inviting them to interrogate the suspects. While the USA declined, Canada accepted. Indian security agencies claimed interrogation revealed that the duo worked for ISI, though Raman acknowledges this was obtained through torture methods inadmissible in courts.
Kartarpur, Guru Nanak's final resting place where he spent 18 years farming and preaching until his death in 1539, holds immense significance for global Sikh pilgrimage. The original gurdwara, destroyed by floods, was reconstructed in the 1920s by Maharaja Bhupinder Singh of Patiala (grandfather of Punjab's former Chief Minister Amarinder Singh).
Diplomatic Evolution: The corridor concept emerged in 1999 during discussions between PMs Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Nawaz Sharif, but stalled until Manmohan Singh's talks with Pervez Musharraf. The breakthrough came in August 2018 when Congress leader Navjot Singh Sidhu and Pakistan Army Chief Qamar Javed Bajwa discussed the project during Imran Khan's swearing-in. Khan declared, "the only way forward is peace."
The Corridor: The 7-kilometer corridor connects Gurdaspur-Pathankot (4 km on Indian territory) to Kartarpur in Pakistan's Narowal district (3 km), crossing the river, Ravi. Pakistan invested an estimated $100 million, expanding the complex from 4 to 42 acres with marble tiles, mosaic staircases, and 20 dormitories accommodating 500 pilgrims initially.
Lingering Tensions: The November 28, 2018, inauguration featured Khalistan supporter Gopal Singh Chawla on the podium, creating unease for India. Students from Khalsa schools across Pakistan attended, including from KPK, Rawalpindi, Karachi, and Balochistan. When questioned about Khalistan's violent nature, supporters simply asked, "Why was Operation Blue Star launched?", pointing to the Congress government's role in creating Bhindranwale, creating what the author describes as a "Catch-22 situation."
This echoes former R&AW Secretary K.S. Nair's experience as High Commissioner to Singapore, where he had to request security for the Indian mission during Operation Blue Star anniversary protests, with Singapore authorities confining anti-India demonstrations to gurdwara premises.
Pro-Khalistan sentiment has grown significantly in Canada, though representing only 2.1% of the total population. However, their concentrated political affiliations give them disproportionate influence in coalition politics, particularly affecting liberal-minded governments. Gurdwaras have proliferated across Canada, including British Columbia and Quebec.
Tensions peaked in 2024 with multiple incidents:
July (Toronto) and September (New York): BPS Swaminarayan temples were vandalised by alleged Khalistan elements, drawing sharp criticism from the Indian government and Indian-origin Canadian MP Chandra Arya
July: Mahatma Gandhi's statue was vandalised in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA)
Pro-Khalistan groups organized a massive car rally in Toronto and Brampton featuring 2,000 vehicles to promote their 'Khalistan Referendum'
November 7: Khalistan referendum was conducted, deliberately timed one day before Guru Nanak's birth anniversary
India has repeatedly urged Canadian authorities to take action against such activities, but tensions persist as the Sikh community represents a significant vote bank for Canadian politicians.
The current tensions echo past incidents. During India's 2021 Republic Day farmers' protests against agricultural bills, Sikh protesters hoisted the Nishan Sahib (Sikh religious flag) at Red Fort, which many mistakenly identified as a Khalistan flag.
This contrasts with January 26, 1984, when Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale actually hoisted the Khalistan flag atop Golden Temple, embarrassing even the Akali Dal, though Bhindranwale had consolidated significant power by then.
Another related issue is the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), India's attempt to integrate persecuted non-Muslim minorities, including Sikhs from Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Bangladesh, potentially absorbing them into the broader Hindu demographic. While many Sikhs, particularly after Taliban's takeover of Afghanistan, welcomed this opportunity, ground realities vary significantly.
Families from Peshawar expressed reluctance to migrate, viewing themselves as minorities in both Pakistan and India, making refugee status unappealing.
Meanwhile, religious pilgrimage continues despite political tensions, with approximately 3,000 pilgrims annually visiting Pakistan's holy shrines including Nankana Sahib, Panja Sahib, Dera Sahib, and Kartarpur under the 1974 India-Pakistan protocols. This year's Gurpurab falling on November 5th will see millions seeking to visit sacred sites across both nations, even as the Kartarpur corridor faces scrutiny for allegedly facilitating anti-India activities.
Sustainable resolution requires multi-pronged diplomatic engagement where governments of Canada, UK, USA, and Pakistan must take Khalistan-related tensions seriously and involve India in constructive dialogue rather than allowing fringe elements to dictate bilateral relations.
These countries should actively engage with Khalistan supporters to prevent vandalism and disorder while respecting legitimate religious expression. India must simultaneously address internal grievances by ensuring Sikhs, comprising 1.7% of the population, receive dignity and respect as an independent religious community.
Most critically, delivering justice for the 1984 Sikh pogrom perpetrators would provide necessary closure instead of allowing political exploitation of these heinous crimes that followed Indira Gandhi's assassination.
Faith and pilgrimage should remain separate from political machinations, allowing religious practices to flourish while governments work collaboratively to address legitimate concerns without compromising national security or diplomatic relationships.
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