The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) in Canada’s westernmost province of British Columbia said on Friday afternoon that three people were arrested as part of an ongoing investigation into Nijjar’s killing.
The three individuals — all Indian nationals — were arrested in Edmonton, Alberta, and charged with first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder, RCMP Superintendent Mandeep Mooker told reporters.
“This investigation does not end here. We are aware that others may have played a role in this homicide, and we remain dedicated to finding and arresting each one of these individuals,” Mooker said.
He added that police are “investigating if there are any ties to the government of India”.
“However, as I said, it’s an ongoing investigation and I don’t have any information to provide on that matter at this time.”
Nijjar was fatally shot on June 18, 2023, outside a Sikh temple in Surrey, British Columbia, spurring widespread condemnation.
A few months later, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said the country’s security agencies were investigating “credible allegations of a potential link” between Indian government agents and Nijjar’s killing.
“Any involvement of a foreign government in the killing of a Canadian citizen on Canadian soil is an unacceptable violation of our sovereignty,” Trudeau said in an address to Canada’s parliament in September of last year.
“In the strongest possible terms, I continue to urge the government of India to cooperate with Canada to get to the bottom of this matter.”
His comments spurred a fierce response from India, which rejected the allegations as “absurd” and politically motivated. New Delhi also accused Canada of not doing enough to stem anti-India activism and “Sikh extremism”.
But Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government has long faced allegations of targeting political opponents, journalists and religious minorities, including Muslims and Sikhs, in what rights groups have said is a continuing effort to stifle dissent.
At the time of Nijjar’s killing, tensions had been growing between Canada and India over a Sikh campaign for a sovereign state in India’s Punjab region. Known as the Khalistan movement, the campaign has supporters in Canada.
Nijjar served as president of the Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdwara, the temple where he was killed. He was among those advocating for Khalistan.
‘Active police operation’
Asked to comment on Friday’s reports that arrests were made in the case, Canada’s Public Safety Minister Dominic LeBlanc referred reporters’ questions to the RCMP.
“You’ll understand that the developments with respect to the murder of a Canadian citizen, Mr Nijjar, are part of an ongoing police operation. This operation started today. It is still an active police operation,” LeBlanc said in Ottawa.
The RCMP identified the three men arrested on Friday as Kamalpreet Singh, Karanpreet Singh and Karan Brar.
Mooker, the police superintendent, said all three were non-permanent residents of Canada and had been in the country for between three to five years.
CBC News reported earlier in the day that, according to unnamed sources, “members of the hit squad are alleged to have played different roles as shooters, drivers and spotters” on the day Nijjar was killed.
“Sources said investigators identified the alleged hit squad members in Canada some months ago and have been keeping them under tight surveillance,” the Canadian broadcaster said.
The High Commission of India in Ottawa did not immediately respond to Al Jazeera’s request for comment on Friday afternoon.
Reported threats
Nijjar’s killing continues to raise questions around allegations of Indian foreign interference, particularly within Sikh diaspora communities in Canada, the United States and other countries.
In September, Moninder Singh at the BC Gurdwaras Council told Al Jazeera that he was among five Sikh leaders — including Nijjar — who were warned by the RCMP’s national security division in 2022 about threats against their lives.
On Friday, Danish Singh, president of the World Sikh Organization of Canada advocacy group, welcomed the arrests in Nijjar’s case but said they also raise new questions.
“While the arrest of the hit squad is important, what’s even more important is identifying and bringing to justice those who directed these operations,” Singh said in a statement, accusing the Indian government of being involved.
Reports of an alleged plot to kill another prominent Sikh separatist leader in the US have also emerged following Nijjar’s death. In late November, the US Department of Justice announced charges against a 52-year-old Indian national, Nikhil Gupta.
Gupta was accused of being part of a foiled attempt to assassinate US citizen Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, in coordination with an Indian government employee and others.
A sign asking for an investigation into India’s role in the killing of Nijjar is seen at the Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdwara temple, in Surrey, September 20 [Chris Helgren/Reuters]
The Washington Post reported earlier this week that US intelligence agencies determined that the operation to target Pannun was approved by the then-head of India’s foreign intelligence agency, known as RAW.
The Indian government rejected those allegations as “unwarranted” and “unsubstantiated”, according to media reports.
On Monday, White House spokesperson Karine Jean-Pierre described the Washington Post report as “a serious matter”.
“The government of India has been very clear with us that they are taking this seriously and will investigate — and we expect that accountability from the government,” Jean-Pierre told reporters during a news briefing.
She added that Washington would continue to raise concerns with New Delhi.
VANCOUVER – Contract negotiations resume today in Vancouver in a labour dispute that has paralyzed container cargo shipping at British Columbia’s ports since Monday.
The BC Maritime Employers Association and International Longshore and Warehouse Union Local 514 are scheduled to meet for the next three days in mediated talks to try to break a deadlock in negotiations.
The union, which represents more than 700 longshore supervisors at ports, including Vancouver, Prince Rupert and Nanaimo, has been without a contract since March last year.
The latest talks come after employers locked out workers in response to what it said was “strike activity” by union members.
The start of the lockout was then followed by several days of no engagement between the two parties, prompting federal Labour Minister Steven MacKinnon to speak with leaders on both sides, asking them to restart talks.
MacKinnon had said that the talks were “progressing at an insufficient pace, indicating a concerning absence of urgency from the parties involved” — a sentiment echoed by several business groups across Canada.
In a joint letter, more than 100 organizations, including the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, Business Council of Canada and associations representing industries from automotive and fertilizer to retail and mining, urged the government to do whatever it takes to end the work stoppage.
“While we acknowledge efforts to continue with mediation, parties have not been able to come to a negotiated agreement,” the letter says. “So, the federal government must take decisive action, using every tool at its disposal to resolve this dispute and limit the damage caused by this disruption.
“We simply cannot afford to once again put Canadian businesses at risk, which in turn puts Canadian livelihoods at risk.”
In the meantime, the union says it has filed a complaint to the Canada Industrial Relations Board against the employers, alleging the association threatened to pull existing conditions out of the last contract in direct contact with its members.
“The BCMEA is trying to undermine the union by attempting to turn members against its democratically elected leadership and bargaining committee — despite the fact that the BCMEA knows full well we received a 96 per cent mandate to take job action if needed,” union president Frank Morena said in a statement.
The employers have responded by calling the complaint “another meritless claim,” adding the final offer to the union that includes a 19.2 per cent wage increase over a four-year term remains on the table.
“The final offer has been on the table for over a week and represents a fair and balanced proposal for employees, and if accepted would end this dispute,” the employers’ statement says. “The offer does not require any concessions from the union.”
The union says the offer does not address the key issue of staffing requirement at the terminals as the port introduces more automation to cargo loading and unloading, which could potentially require fewer workers to operate than older systems.
The Port of Vancouver is the largest in Canada and has seen a number of labour disruptions, including two instances involving the rail and grain storage sectors earlier this year.
A 13-day strike by another group of workers at the port last year resulted in the disruption of a significant amount of shipping and trade.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 9, 2024.
The Royal Canadian Legion says a new partnership with e-commerce giant Amazon is helping boost its veterans’ fund, and will hopefully expand its donor base in the digital world.
Since the Oct. 25 launch of its Amazon.ca storefront, the legion says it has received nearly 10,000 orders for poppies.
Online shoppers can order lapel poppies on Amazon in exchange for donations or buy items such as “We Remember” lawn signs, Remembrance Day pins and other accessories, with all proceeds going to the legion’s Poppy Trust Fund for Canadian veterans and their families.
Nujma Bond, the legion’s national spokesperson, said the organization sees this move as keeping up with modern purchasing habits.
“As the world around us evolves we have been looking at different ways to distribute poppies and to make it easier for people to access them,” she said in an interview.
“This is definitely a way to reach a wider number of Canadians of all ages. And certainly younger Canadians are much more active on the web, on social media in general, so we’re also engaging in that way.”
Al Plume, a member of a legion branch in Trenton, Ont., said the online store can also help with outreach to veterans who are far from home.
“For veterans that are overseas and are away, (or) can’t get to a store they can order them online, it’s Amazon.” Plume said.
Plume spent 35 years in the military with the Royal Engineers, and retired eight years ago. He said making sure veterans are looked after is his passion.
“I’ve seen the struggles that our veterans have had with Veterans Affairs … and that’s why I got involved, with making sure that the people get to them and help the veterans with their paperwork.”
But the message about the Amazon storefront didn’t appear to reach all of the legion’s locations, with volunteers at Branch 179 on Vancouver’s Commercial Drive saying they hadn’t heard about the online push.
Holly Paddon, the branch’s poppy campaign co-ordinator and bartender, said the Amazon partnership never came up in meetings with other legion volunteers and officials.
“I work at the legion, I work with the Vancouver poppy office and I go to the meetings for the Vancouver poppy campaign — which includes all the legions in Vancouver — and not once has this been mentioned,” she said.
Paddon said the initiative is a great idea, but she would like to have known more about it.
The legion also sells a larger collection of items at poppystore.ca.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 9, 2024.
