 "Canada-based pro-Khalistan leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar shot dead")
Canada-based Khalistani supporter and leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar was shot dead in the Surrey Gurudwara Sahib parking lot in Brampton by two unidentified men. He was also behind organising a separatist referendum in Brampton City.
Nijjar was a resident of Jalandhar, Punjab and was involved in several anti-India activities. He was the president of Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdwara in Surrey City and was associated with Sikh for Justice (SKJ), a separatist organisation banned in India.
Nijjar was designated as an 'individual terrorist'
Hardeep Singh Nijjar was designated as an individual terrorist by the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) in July 2023.
Nijjar, who was also the Chief of Canada-based Khalistan Tiger Force, was one of the most wanted terrorists in India. In July last year, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) announced a cash reward of Rs 10 lakh on his head.
He was actively involved in recruiting, training, financing and operationalising pro-Khalistani terrorist activities and modules for spreading terrorism in India. He was often observed giving hate speeches against India through social media platforms.
According to the NIA, Hardeep Singh and his partner Arshdeep were involved in disrupting the communal harmony in Punjab where he was involved in killing a Hindu priest.
The NIA found Nijjar's involvement in several cases, and he was also accused of killing Ripudaman Singh Malik, the man who was acquitted in a 1985 Air India terrorist bombing case, in Surrey last year.