Sikh radicalisation is on a rise in Canada. The assassination of Ripudaman Malik was once terror accused has ringed the alarming bells for Canada. The security agencies are working meticulously to curb the Sikh radicalisation.
Ripudaman Malik was once acquitted in the 1985 Air India bombing. In 1985 the domestic flight from Srignagar to Delhi Palam airport was hijacked. Because of this it was flown to the Lahore airport. Some Sikh men hijacked the flight while they were decked up with weapons, ammunition, arms, daggers and a bomb. The Press Trust of India quoted that the hijackers were shouting, “Long Live Khalistan.” In the hijack around 329 people including the passengers and crew were killed
The death of Ripudaman Malik once again brought the alarming issue of Khalistan radicalists in Canada. The Canadian police and intelligence bureau is closing closely to keep a stringent eye on their activities. They are trying to stem out this issue due to which no menace will be created in future.
Malik was killed in Surrey, British Columbia province, last Thursday by a bullet. Six gangsters belonging to Sikh community are said to be operating from there.
No arrests have been made so far due to absence of concrete evidence. No one has claimed responsibility for Rupinder Malik’s killing. According to reports, two extremists, Hardeep Singh and Mohinder Boyle had Malik’s name in their hit list.
Sikh radicalisation and Khalistan movement:
The Khalistan movement started back when the English rule ended in India and India was divided. It is also known as the Sikh seperatist movement in which some want the creation of an independent state Khalisthan. Khalistan means ‘Land of Khalsa.’
The proposed state will consist of parts from Punjab, India and Punjab, Pakistan because the Sikh community is in majority in these areas. With the financial support and help of Sikh diaspora, the movement flourished in India in the late 1900s.
Factional infighting, disillusionment, stringent police crackdowns and failure to reach its objective has pestered the movement. But it still gets some support from the Sikh diaspora as well as “Khalistan sympathisers” from England, Canada and Italy.
More on Ripudaman Malik’s killing:
The two suspects of the killing had protested against the Canadian Sikhs over the printing of Sri Guru Granth Sahib. They had demanded the authorities to revoke the permission to print the Sri Guru Granth Sahib because they believed that it contained some mistakes.
The extremists brought twenty physical copies of Sri Guru Branth Sahib (Swaroops) and the printing machine from Ruppinder Malik’s residence. They brought it to the Guru Nanak Sikh Temple in order to check for any mistakes in the printed books.
But to their chagrin, they didn’t find any. However they didn’t oblige by the request to return the books and the machine to the owner. The proposed visit of another Sikh leader, Jathedar Akal Takht irked the two extremists. However Nijjar has denied all alegeations on his role in the assassination.
Manjit Singh, the former President of the Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee commented that Pakistan’s Inter- Services Intelligence (ISI) could be behind this killing. He stressed that the Canadian government should also investigate keeping this point in view. The involvement of the ISI with the Khalistan separatists is very well known because of which the government should not ignore these unverified claims.
While the brutal assiasination is still a mystery, the government has got a major lead. It has got the links and identified the vehicle used in this targeted killing.
Ahead of Punjab elections, illicit activities by the Khalistan separatists had created a grave concern over India’s internal security. Rinda Sindhu, Sikh gangster, was involved with ISI to destabilise India’s security and inner stability near the border areas.
The Sikh radicalisation poses a great threat to India’s as well as Canada’s internal security. The governments of these countries are constantly trying to curb their nefarious activities.
