Terror Hypocrisy

Canada’s decision to designate the Lawrence Bishnoi gang a “terrorist entity” under its Criminal Code might appear at first glance a long-overdue step toward safeguarding its own society. Bishnoi’s syndicate, implicated in murder, extortion, arms and narcotics trafficking and even cross-border assassinations, certainly fits the definition of a terrorist organisation. The move gives Ottawa the tools with which to freeze assets of the infamous gangster, bar entry to the gang’s members and prosecuting those who aid the gang.

But beneath the veneer of resolve lies a glaring hypocrisy. The Canadian government that now claims to be cracking down on violent actors has for years coddled and provided space to anti-India extremist groups, notably Khalistani separatists and their sympathisers as well as those linked to radical Islamist networks. Canada’s selective morality is dangerous.

The Bishnoi gang was already notorious within Canada. After the assassination of Punjabi singer Sidhu Moose Wala in May 2022, Bishnoi’s network, run partly through his Canada-based associate Goldy Brar, became a household name. Canadian politicians had for months urged Ottawa to act. Only after this pressure, and in the wake of Justin Trudeau’s ouster, did Ottawa finally yield.

Yet, the Canadian establishment continues to turn a blind eye to pro-Khalistan outfits operating freely on its soil, raising money, radicalising youth and openly glorifying violence against India.

The hypocrisy is staggering. Ottawa says it cannot tolerate acts of violence and terror that create a climate of fear and intimidation. Yet for decades, it has allowed extremist elements within its Sikh diaspora to hold rallies that feature effigies of Indian diplomats hanged in mock gallows, parades that lionise terrorists like Talwinder Parmar, the mastermind of the 1985 Air India bombing, and events where calls for India’s dismemberment are made under the banner of ‘free expression.’

When New Delhi raises objections, Canadian leaders retreat behind the shield of liberal platitudes. The Air India disaster itself remains the clearest reminder of Canada’s negligence. Air India Flight 182, blown out of the sky off the coast of Ireland in June 1985, killed 329 people, most of them Canadians of Indian origin. It was Canada’s worst-ever terror attack. And yet, successive governments treated it as an Indian tragedy rather than a Canadian one.

While Bishnoi’s criminal empire has rightly been throttled, Khalistani and Islamist networks still enjoy extraordinary leniency. Consider Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a designated terrorist in India but a ‘community leader’ in Canada until his death in 2023. Ex-PM Trudeau’s astonishing claim that Indian agents were behind Nijjar’s killing, made without evidence, had plunged ties with New Delhi to their lowest point in decades.

Only after Trudeau’s removal and Mark Carney’s rise to prime ministership has there been a cautious thaw. But if Canada is serious about rebuilding credibility, it must show equal resolve against Khalistani separatists as it has against Bishnoi. Anything less would prove that Ottawa’s fight against terror is a matter of convenience, not conviction.