As the word ‘Khalistan’ echoes through echelons of power across anglophone countries, it is worth understanding how the pro-Khalistan lobby works – and how the Indian one doesn’t.
Pro-Khalistan elements in Canada have stirred deep emotions, not just in New Delhi and Ottawa but also in the international political arena. But Canada isn’t the only country harbouring these separatist elements. The UK, too, has a strong Khalistan lobby that operates in plain sight, often rubbing shoulders with unwitting British Indians who are often too preoccupied with daily pursuits to form an effective ecosystem of resistance.
The Khalistan lobby in UK
Take the recent case of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a pro-Khalistan leader who was killed a few months ago and branded a local activist, family man and hard-working plumber by his supporters in the Canadian Sikh community. This is partly due to the insidious nature and deep reach of the Khalistan lobby. Furthermore, Khalistani groups have placed their own people in Western news outlets via diversity schemes. However, there is no organised diaspora group that can act as a counter-weight to such acts at the moment.
Numerous pieces of evidence connect Nijjar to terrorist organisations. Nevertheless, diaspora groups lack the resources and expertise to disseminate this information within the mainstream media in the UK. To illustrate, he was affiliated with the Babbar Khalsa International (BKI). This pro-Khalistan extremist group has been officially banned and recognised as an international terrorist organisation by several nations, including the United States, Canada, the UK, the European Union, Japan, Malaysia, and India.
Also read: India and Australia can’t go the Canada way over pro-Khalistan activities
UK can’t ignore this threat
In my quest to better understand the Khalistan situation in the UK, I had the opportunity to converse with British security analyst Chris Blackburn. According to Blackburn, the situation in the UK, and even in the US, is not as severe as in Canada. In fact, UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak recently addressed the Khalistan issue, stating that “no form of violence or extremism” would be tolerated in the country.
However, the challenge lies in stopping these radical groups from infiltrating the political landscape by exploiting human rights causes. For example, the Sikh Federation UK has been known to glorify the 1987 terror attack on a British school, known as the Dormers Wells mass murder. They have also co-opted movements for justice related to the 1984 anti-Sikh riots and the 2020-21 farmer protests, attempting to legitimise and mainstream themselves.
The Sikh Federation also controls the British Sikh APPG (All Party Parliamentary Group), which is chaired by Preet Gill, an MP with alleged links to pro-Khalistan extremists. While Khalistani elements in the UK may not wield the same level of influence over politics and State policy as they do in Canada, they are actively trying to replicate the same model that has granted them access to power in Canada. Their growing influence in the UK is a concerning development. It’s also noticeable that authorities and Western media sometimes take a neutral stance or even normalise Khalistani elements.
Furthermore, a group of Sikh lawyers in Britain reportedly opposed the UK government-commissioned Bloom Review, which raised concerns over the growing influence of pro-Khalistan radicals within the British Sikh community. The report, published in April this year, devoted 13 pages to Sikhs under its “faith-based extremism” section, and was slammed by the lawyers for being “colonialist”.
Also read: Punjab’s Sikhs have 99 problems but Khalistan ain’t one. They’re very proud Indians, but angry
Roaring support
The Khalistani extremist movement has created an ecosystem where it receives support from various groups to propagate its agenda. Some social media influencers also spread Khalistanti propaganda.
Pro-Khalistan elements have also been known to employ coercive tactics to promote their agenda. A report from Khalsa Vox has brought to light Sikh communities in the UK experiencing coercion and intimidation from them. It’s truly disheartening to witness that many Sikhs living in the UK face harassment from Khalistani extremists for not embracing their ideology. There have been several distressing incidents, including masked gangs affiliated with these groups targeting Sikh families in Britain and issuing horrifying threats of rape and death. Additionally, even businesses like the Rangrez restaurant in Hammersmith, owned by a pro-Indian Sikh, have fallen prey to attacks by these elements.
Furthermore, this extremism has extended to prominent figures like Lord Singh of Wimbledon, a respected Sikh leader in the UK. He has revealed that he was harassed and silenced by certain individuals and organisations because his views differed from theirs on Sikh-related issues. These incidents shed light on the challenges and routine intimidation faced by Sikhs who dare to reject extremist ideologies in the UK.
While some may argue that pro-Khalistanis are a fringe group, it’s hard to deny that they’ve been effective in making themselves appear more influential than they actually are. Their strength also lies in their robust control over gurudwaras, giving them a powerful say in all community-related matters. The gurudwara is the fulcrum of Sikh life – from marriages, religious rituals, social functions to spiritual pursuits. Thus, many Sikhs remain dependent and vulnerable due to Khalistani elements’ control over gurudwaras. Incidentally, the largest gurudwara in the UK, Guru Sri Singh Sabha, displays the picture of slain pro-Khalistan leader Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale.
Also read: Chinese debating who to support — India or Canada. They don’t even get the Khalistan issue
Resistance to the Khalistan movement
It’s not like the Khalistani movement didn’t encounter resistance; in fact, it has faced considerable pushback over the years, which is why its success has been limited thus far. And recent developments in the UK suggest a growing awareness of the threat posed by Pro-Khalistan extremism. The UK government’s decision to allocate funding to understand this threat better shows that a big step has been taken toward addressing and resolving the issue.
Even Sikh communities have been vocal in their protests against the movement. For instance, community leaders in Southall, London, came together at the Gurdwara Shri Guru Singh Sabha on Park Avenue to challenge the prevailing anti-India narrative propagated by Khalistanis and their supporters. This demonstrates the resilience of Sikh communities in resisting the influence of Khalistan extremism despite the dangers involved.
However, the success of the Khalistan movement in Britain speaks less to the skills of Khalistani extremists and more to the lacklustre engagement of the Indian diaspora group. As individuals within the Sikh community in Britain actively supported and propagated the Khalistani cause, the broader Indian diaspora, comprising diverse sub-ethnic, religious, and regional backgrounds, did not actively counter these efforts or even tried to promote a unified, inclusive narrative of India. There is no robust ecosystem to counter Khalistani extremism – a key reason for our failure in curbing it.
Amana Begam Ansari is a columnist and TV news panelist. She runs a weekly YouTube show called ‘India This Week by Amana and Khalid’. She tweets @Amana_Ansari. Views are personal.
The text has been updated with updated links.