Five Misconceptions Canadians Have on Khalistan “Movement”
In the last few months, the Khalistani (not Sikh) menace has come to the forefront in Canada due to the apparent nuisance, the violence on the streets, intimidation and death threats — including to the white journalists and podcasters, two-tier policing — particularly in Brampton and Surrey, and excessive political influence — particularly in the Liberals and NDP, and eulogizing Hamas.
People in Canada are waking up to these organized crime rings engaged in drugs, human trafficking, illegal weapons smuggling, violence, car thefts and a range of immigration and asylum scams but masquerading as a “separatist” movement to legitimize their political existence. And I don’t need to write that “it won’t be long before they start claiming ownership of Canada” because that has started already!
However, many misconceptions about this so-called “Khalistan struggle” must be dispelled because one can’t find a solution without first understanding the problem. I have explained in detail what Khalistan is in my earlier post but here the focus will be on what it is NOT.
1. Two immigrant communities fighting each other
One of the most common tantrums thrown around by the average Caucasian Canadian fed up seeing yellow flags almost every weekend in Brampton and Surrey is, “Oh, these two immigrant communities bringing their foreign fights here in Canada”.
First of all, there is no “each other” in this. This is one clear aggressor, Khalistanis, and the opposite side, Sikhs and Hindus, defending their right to exist. It comes from the fact that while Khalistanis have been routinely found to be attacking Hindu temples and individuals. In the last three years, in particular, have seen growing attacks from pro-Khalistan extremists on Hindu temples. The only counter-protest, a peaceful one, that happened in front of a Khalistani-occupied Gurdwara was recently on November 4th in response to the violent attacks inside the premises of a Hindu temple the earlier day.
Do you know what “each other” would look like? Sikhs and Hindus shout slogans on megaphones in front of every Khalistani-occupied Gurdwara every weekend. Sikhs and Hindus protested in front of every event that platformed pro-Khalistan federal, provincial or municipal lawmakers. Sikhs and Hindus shouted profanities and made indecent gestures in front of every “nagar kirtan” that venerated terrorists and celebrated political assassinations. Sikhs and Hindus intimidated and physically assaulted every pro-Khalistani journalist. But does that happen?
Secondly, Khalistan, as a concept, has existed in Canada and the UK for almost a century now, and the terrorism bit has aged for more than four decades — launching with the biggest aviation terrorist attack in history before 9/11 — the Air India Flight 182 bombed on 23rd June 1985 when flying from Montreal to London. So many of these radicalized Khalistanis are second and third-generation Canadians who have been to Khalistani-occupied Gurdwaras here in Canada. Out of the 329 people who died in the Air India Flight 182 bombing of 1985, 268 were Canadian citizens. Their only mistake, perhaps, was that they were not white Canadians. So, calling it “two immigrant communities” is a delusion of the highest order, at best.
2. Hindu vs Sikh Issue
Another common mistake people make is calling it a Hindu vs Sikh issue when even Sikhs have been targeted by Khalistanis — e.g. Tara Singh Hayer. Khalistanis attempted to take Tara Singh Hayer’s life three times for speaking out against Khalistani violence — the first time with a bomb, which he escaped; the second time with shooting, which left him paralyzed but he still survived, and the third fatal attempt by shooting that took his life. Of course, the RCMP charged nobody as people in Canada naturally take two bullets twice a day before meals.
Sikh sect, even though considered a “religion” in Canada, is a branch of the Dharmic fold (Hindus, Buddhists, Jains and Sikhs, mainly) with a high rate of intermingling, particularly in terms of marriages and visiting each other’s places of worship. In Canada, many temples, including the Hindu Sabha Mandir, receive a high amount of footfall from Sikhs. Many people saw the visuals of what happened outside the Hindu Sabha Mandir on 3rd November. However, not many saw the visuals of inside the temple that day. As one can see, more than half of the beneficiaries of the camp were Sikhs. Many scholars point to the fact that the Guru Granth Sahib, the holy book of the Sikh sect, has numerous references to Ram and Hari (Vishnu). Maharaja Ranjit Singh, the founder of the Sikh empire, donated embossed gold sheets cloaking the spires and dome of the Kashi Vishwanath temple in 1838.
Fortunately, this meme of Sikhs-different-from-Hindu doesn’t have any buyers except for Khalistanis.
3. Sikhs Are Being Persecuted in India
Khalistanis often parrot this narrative but don’t have anything to say beyond 1984 (as if that was last year). Even for 1984, which was a very dark chapter in India’s history, Khalistanis conveniently removed the fact that the massacre of Sikhs was organized by the Indian National Congress party of that time as revenge for killing their leader, Indira Gandhi. They also do not mention Rajiv Gandhi’s statement, “When a big tree falls, the earth shakes a little.”, justifying the violence by Indian National Congress workers on the innocent Sikhs, particularly in Delhi. Instead, Khalistanis blame the Hindu community for the violence on Sikhs unleashed by the Indian National Congress party workers — maybe just so that their business of anti-Hindu hate keeps running even if a Congress government is not there in India?
India has had a Sikh Prime Minister for 10 years, just 10 years ago (2004–2014). We have also had a Sikh President. Many Sikhs have achieved tremendous success and represented India on the international stage — be it in music, science, business, or sports. Indian army has a Sikh regiment. Many Sikhs have been at the top posts in India’s defence forces, such as Air Chief Marshal Birender Singh Dhanoa, Major General Rajinder Singh ‘Sparrow”, Lt General Jagjit Singh Arora (who made Pakistan surrender in the 1971 Bangladesh Liberation War), Admiral Karambir Singh Nijjer (yes) and many others. Sikhs are a significant force in India’s defence forces. Best of all, the police officer who brought an end to the Khalistan terrorism in Punjab in the 90s was a Sikh himself — KPS Gill — who authored several books on the topic. Sikhs are arguably the most patriotic and hard-working community a country can have. A few bad apples can’t ruin the community’s reputation.
And the most telling evidence was provided by RCMP itself in response to the Khalistani mouthpiece Baaz News’ question in a press conference. When the Baaz News “reporter” asked if India is targeting Sikhs in Canada, the RCMP Brigitte Gauvin responded that only pro-Khalistani individuals are being targeted by a particular “Bishnoi group,” which they “believe that that group is connected to agents of the government of India.” (slow clap)
4. Khalistanis Represent Sikhs
Much of this impression comes from the fact that Khalistanis dress up like Sikhs (but their behaviour is completely antithetical to Sikh values), their political over-representation and the political patronage they receive from #cdnpoli, largely due to their control over major Gurdwaras and vote bank politics. The root of this over-representation and patronage, largely done by rigging the nomination process of the top three political parties in Canada, has been comprehensively explained by Balraj Deol ji in this podcast below.
It is also telling that while Khalistanis claim to represent Sikhs when Maharaja Ranjit Singh’s statue was vandalized in Brampton, the World Sikh Organization could not even write the word “condemn,” trying to downplay the severity, failing to demand accountability from the perpetrators of the act, and deflecting attention to India instead. Khalistani mouthpiece reported it as regular news. And Gurpatwant Singh Pannun’s Sikhs For Justice maintained radio silence. How do these organizations claim to represent the Sikh community? They only represent Khalistanis.
5. Khalistanis Are Demanding Separate Sikh Country
This is another impression that Khalistanis try to give to the general public that they are demanding a “Sikh” state. According to Khalistanis, this utopian state — Khalistan — will include the entire present-day Punjab state of India and bits from the neighbouring Indian states. Of course, the demand doesn’t include
1) the more significant, in terms of area, Punjab state in Pakistan;
2) the birthplace of the founder of the Sikh sect (Guru Nanak Dev), Nankana Sahib in Pakistan; and
3) Lahore, which was the capital of the Sikh empire in the early 19th century, currently in Pakistan.
Coincidence eh? No no, it has nothing to do with fear of the Pakistani spy agency ISI. Khalistanis must be feeling truly empowered to beg for a visa to go to their own sect’s founder’s birthplace. However, the only response these low-IQ, high-terror Khalistanis have to this cross-questioning is, “You’re a BJP agent, RAW agent, Indian gaming agent, Hindutva fascist etc., etc.”
Conclusion
The Khalistan issue in Canada is fraught with misconceptions that hinder meaningful discourse. While the movement masquerades as a separatist effort, it thrives on intimidation, misinformation, and political patronage. By conflating itself with the Sikh community, Khalistanis obscure their distinct identity as extremist elements, not representatives of Sikhs. Historical distortions, geopolitical narratives, and organized criminal activities have allowed this issue to persist. Addressing these misconceptions — such as the false framing of it as a Sikh cause or a Hindu-Sikh conflict — is critical to understanding and tackling this menace effectively.
Lastly, it needs to be understood that unlike Quebec separatism, where eight people died in seven years of violence by FLQ, the Khalistani separatism has been extremely violent — both in Canada and India — with thousands of casualties. There are deep scars, particularly in the Punjabi community — Sikhs and non-Sikhs — where every single family lost some near and dear ones in the violence. The Indian psyche takes the territorial integrity of India extremely seriously, unlike any other country. This will never change.
