London: The Sikh Federation (UK) has renewed calls for an inquest into the suspicious death of Sikh activist Avtar Singh Khanda, alleging negligence by West Midlands Police and a wider cover-up by UK authorities under pressure from the Indian government.

New evidence, including a report by a renowned pathologist, has raised serious questions about the circumstances surrounding Avtar Singh Khanda’s death in a Birmingham hospital in June 2023. According to the Federation, Avtar’s family’s barrister has formally written to the senior coroner, Louise Hunt, urging her to open an inquest in light of the new findings.

In October 2023, the senior coroner declined to open an inquest, relying on assurances from West Midlands Police that there were “no suspicious circumstances.” However, an investigative report by The Guardian, published on July 2, 2025, revealed inconsistencies in the police’s handling of the case. In a revised statement issued in December 2023, the police retreated from their original position, merely stating they were “satisfied” there were no suspicious circumstances.

Dr Ashley Fegan-Earl, a pathologist engaged by the family, has since reported that the medical evidence “does not rule out death from an unnatural cause” and pointed to “the real possibility that poisoning caused his death.” He also highlighted the absence of specialist testing and the limitations of tests that were conducted.

Michael Polak, a barrister from Church Court Chambers acting for the family, has submitted evidence asserting that West Midlands Police conducted no meaningful investigation and relied solely on medical findings.

Jaspal Singh, Lead Executive of the Sikh Federation (UK), said the coroner had been “misled by the police,” and insisted the matter must now be re-examined with the full context. “The timing of Avtar Singh Khanda’s death—just three days before the assassination of Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Canada and around the same time as the plot to kill Gurpatwant Singh Pannun in the US—must be taken seriously,” he said.

Senior members of the Sikh Federation (UK), including Dabinderjit Singh OBE, held three meetings in 2024 with West Midlands Police Chief Constable Craig Guilford and his team at Guru Nanak Gurdwara, Smethwick, where Avtar’s funeral was held. “It was clear to me after the first two meetings that the West Midlands Police were negligent at best,” said Dabinderjit Singh.

“I attended those meetings where we presented a detailed timeline before and after Avtar Singh Khanda’s death on the suspicions the West Midlands Police should have had in the critical period before he was cremated on 12 August 2023,” he added.

He further stated: “Taking account of everything we have learnt over the last two years… I am in no doubt there has been a cover-up by the authorities in the UK of the Indian government’s transnational repression of Sikh activists.”

Jas Singh of the Sikh Federation (UK), who submitted a witness statement in the case, said: “It is a scandal that the authorities—coroner and police—colluded and were negligent in refusing to carry out an autopsy despite the suspicious circumstances surrounding Avtar’s death.”

He further claimed that central government officials “inappropriately pressured” the family and placed hurdles to prevent a private autopsy before the cremation.

In October 2024, during a briefing to MPs in Parliament, Dabinderjit Singh had warned that the UK government may only respond to India’s alleged transnational repression “if a Sikh activist is shot dead like Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Canada.”

The Sikh Federation has maintained that UK authorities have been made aware of threats to Sikh activists both in the UK and abroad but “lack the courage to publicly call out India.”

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Here is copy of Press Release Issued by the Sikh Federation UK on 3 July 2025:-