OTTAWA — The World Sikh Organization of Canada (WSO) has issued a strong public statement warning the Canadian government against the “appeasement” of India through expanding economic ties while Indian intelligence agencies continue to target Sikh Canadians. A copy of this written release is available with the Sikh Siyasat News (SSN).
The warning coincides with the high-profile arrival of Indian Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal in Canada. Leading a group of more than 100 senior business representatives—described as the largest Indian delegation ever to visit the country—Goyal is scheduled to meet with Prime Minister Mark Carney, Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand, and International Trade Minister Maninder Sidhu. The meetings aim to advance a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement between Canada and India, a move the WSO argues completely disregards ongoing threats to Canadian citizens.
The WSO highlighted that over a dozen Sikh community members currently live under “duties to warn” due to credible, active threats on their lives. The organization revealed it is aware of multiple incidents over the past six months where individuals were surveilled, harassed, and intimidated by agents representing the Government of India.
These warnings align with the recently released CSIS Public Report 2025, which explicitly detailed India’s clandestine operations. According to the report:
“Historically, India has cultivated covert relationships with Canadian politicians, journalists, and members of the Indo-Canadian community, to exert its influence and advance its interests. This has included transnational repression (TNR) activities, such as surveillance and other coercive tactics meant to suppress criticism of the Government of India and create fear in the community.”
The CSIS report further clarified that “in Canada, advocacy for Khalistan separatism is lawful political activity,” directly contradicting New Delhi’s justification for its security operations.
The diplomatic friction is exacerbated by prior testimonies from senior Canadian officials. Former National Security Adviser Nathalie Drouin previously testified before parliament that India used diplomatic channels and proxies to gather intelligence on Canadian Sikhs. This data was allegedly funneled to the Lawrence Bishnoi gang—which Canada officially listed as a terrorist entity in September 2025—to carry out violent campaigns. Furthermore, senior Canadian officials have directly implicated Indian Home Minister Amit Shah, a close ally of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in ordering these violent operations.
Despite these findings, the Indian High Commissioner to Canada, Dinesh Kumar Patnai, continues to deny any state-sponsored role in transnational repression or foreign interference.
Condemning the normalization of bilateral trade under these conditions, WSO President Danish Singh expressed deep concern over the federal government’s priorities.
“Engaging in trade negotiations without accountability from India on foreign interference and transnational repression is not diplomacy, it is appeasement,” Singh stated. “The Government of Canada cannot normalize relations and deepen economic ties while Sikh Canadians continue to face threats, intimidation, surveillance, and violence linked to the Indian government and its proxies.”
Singh further warned that treating New Delhi as a standard economic partner undermines domestic security, concluding: “The same government accused of orchestrating violence and repression against Canadians cannot be treated as a normal trade partner without accountability and meaningful action.”
