The ruling Aam Aadmi Party government in Punjab has been accused of indirectly supporting Khalistanis. But the way the Punjab government continues to turn a blind eye to incidents involving Khalistanis in Canada is confirming the allegations that have been leveled against them so far. The Punjab government has refused to comment on the dispute between India and Canada. Now, despite the continued deterioration of the atmosphere vis-à-vis India and Canada, the Punjab government’s mysterious silence is beyond comprehension. While before the Aam Aadmi Party government in Punjab, the Congress government of Captain Amarinder Singh had never surrendered to the fundamentalists in this way. Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann is yet to comment on the matter. After the Nijjar massacre in Canada, the way Prime Minister Justin Trudeau continuously attacks India in the name of making its politics shine, the way Khalistani militants repeatedly attack Hindus there, Punjab faces once more to the riots. According to a report in the Indian Express last month, some Punjab government ministers declined to comment, although one said the party had not made its position clear on the matter.
Another AAP leader, on condition of anonymity, said that we defend the sovereignty, unity and security of the country. India has done the right thing by reacting. We know why Trudeau is doing this. It is continually failing on the domestic front. They are trying to satisfy a community by not being able to do anything about issues like unemployment, healthcare, and rising crime rates in Canada. The AAP leader said his party supports the Centre’s decision to expel the Canadian diplomats. But no one is willing to speak openly. This is why allegations against Arvind Kejriwal, from poet Kumar Vishwas to terrorist Gurupatwant Pannu, of links with Khalistani terrorists appear to be true.
AAP govt hides its face in Canada controversy
Relations between the two countries were first strained in September last year, when Trudeau claimed in the Canadian Parliament that India participated in the murder of Nijjar in Surrey in June 2023. Mann then faced criticism from the opposition. for remaining silent on this issue. But meanwhile, as the issue becomes more serious, the silence of the Punjab government also becomes suspicious. On the silence of the AAP government, Leader of Opposition in Punjab Assembly Pratap Singh Bajwa attacked the party for not saying a single word on the Canada controversy. Congress leader Sukhpal Singh Khaira had questioned the Chief Minister who Mann claims represents 3 million people of Punjab, but did not say a word on the issue, which is hurting millions of Punjabis living in Canada, especially the young ones.
The AAP is believed to have the support of the NRI community. During the campaign for the 2017 assembly elections, a large number of people from the migrant community came to Punjab and extended support to the party. However, the AAP had lost the election by that time, winning only 20 of 117 seats. In 2022, AAP once again contested elections and came to power by winning 91 seats, again gaining the support of the NRI community. Most of those supporting AAP were said to be Khalistani supporters. So, is it because of this public support that Aam Aadmi Party leaders are silent on the Canada controversy?
Serious allegations have been made against Arvind Kejriwal
A few days ago, separatist Gurpatwant Singh Pannu had released a video alleging that the Aam Aadmi Party, under the leadership of Kejriwal, received US$16 million from separatist groups between 2014 and 2022. After this video, a whistleblower also shared some social media posts of former Aam Aadmi Party worker Dr Munish Raizada. In the complaint received by the LG, it was alleged that Kejriwal, as national coordinator, had worked for the Aam Aadmi Party through. Banned Terrorists Took funds from Sikh for Justice organization.
According to LG’s office, on April 1, 2024, Ashu Mongia, national general secretary of an organization called World Hindu Federation of India, submitted a written complaint to LG. He had demanded a thorough investigation into the funds received by the Aam Aadmi Party and its source. In the complaint received by the LG, it was alleged that the Kejriwal-led Aam Aadmi Party had received US$16 million (around Rs 130 crore). of extremist separatist groups) a huge amount of money was found. The LG in his recommendation said that the complaint was filed against a Chief Minister and is related to political funding received from a banned terrorist organisation. In such a situation, a thorough investigation at other levels is necessary, including a forensic investigation of the electronic evidence provided by the complainant.
With the approval of the LG, its Principal Secretary wrote a letter to the Union Home Minister on May 3. In it, the complaint was forwarded to him and it was stated that the LG had recommended an investigation by the NIA into this matter. LG also cited the letter written by Kejriwal to activist Iqbal Singh in January 2014. In this, Kejriwal expressed sympathy for the Sikh-related issues raised through him and said his government has already recommended Bhullar’s release to the President. However, Aam Aadmi Party leader and Delhi government minister Saurabh Bhardwaj wrote on social media that LG Saheb is trying his best to grab the headlines amid the elections. This is a complete abuse of LG’s constitutional office. Two years ago, the High Court rejected a public interest litigation that called for a high-level inquiry into the matter.
Poet Kumar Vishwas, who was once very close to Arvind Kejriwal, had also made that allegation three years ago. In a conversation with news agency ANI, he said that Arvind Kejriwal is a supporter of Khalistan and that man can go to any length for power. Kumar Vishwas had said that Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal has always supported Khalistan. When I was with him, he kept telling me his plans. One day he told me: either I will become the chief minister of the state of Punjab or the first prime minister of the independent nation.
The CPI and Congress also cooperated in the Canada dispute, so why is the Aam Aadmi Party absent?
The question arises: when both the Congress government in Punjab and the Punjab CPI local unit have always been giving statements against Justin Trudeau, then why is the Aam Aadmi Party hiding its face in this regard? Former Punjab Chief Minister and now BJP leader Amarinder Singh has always been accusing Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau of ruining India-Canada relations. There was no difference in his views even when he was chief of the Congress government in Punjab.
Amarinder Singh says Trudeau has ruined the relationship between India and Canada. Trudeau is only interested in one thing and that is getting Sikh votes in his elections. Recalling his tenure as Punjab Chief Minister, Singh says he had refused to meet the then Canadian Defense Minister Harjit Sajjan and called him a Khalistani supporter. Recalling Trudeau’s visit to India in 2018, he said that when Trudeau came here he wanted to meet me. I told him I didn’t want to meet him. I wanted to come to Punjab. The Indian government then told Trudeau that if he does not meet the Chief Minister, he will not be able to go to Punjab. So we had to meet. Similarly, the Bharatiya Janata Party-led central government also has an unexpected ally in the Communist Party of India (Marxist).
