In yet another attempt to muzzle dissenting voices abroad, the Modi-led Indian government has directed the National Investigation Agency (NIA) to register a fresh case against US-based Sikh leader Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, General Counsel of the pro-Khalistan organization Sikhs For Justice (SFJ).
The case was registered under black laws including the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) and sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) after Pannun, in a video address from Washington on August 10, urged Sikh soldiers to resist Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Independence Day flag hoisting ceremony at Delhi’s Red Fort. He had earlier addressed a press briefing via video link during a “Meet the Press” event at the Lahore Press Club.
The NIA’s FIR accuses Pannun of announcing a reward of Rs 11 crore for Sikh soldiers who would prevent Modi from unfurling the tricolour. It further alleges that he unveiled a map of Khalistan, encompassing Punjab, Delhi, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh, while claiming that SFJ had constituted a “Shaheed Jatha” to resist Indian rule.
Indian Home Ministry’s order to the NIA claims that Pannun’s activities amount to “spreading disaffection among Sikhs against India” and “threatening its sovereignty and integrity.” The order stresses that the matter has “national and international ramifications” and must therefore be investigated by the NIA.
Political observers point out that India has increasingly weaponized the NIA as a political tool of the BJP and RSS regime to silence voices of dissent, not only in Indian illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir but also against Sikh activists abroad who continue to expose New Delhi’s excesses.
