Chandra Arya, a Liberal Party MP, has expressed concern that Hindus in Canada are living in fear after pro-Khalistan radical Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, founder of Sikhs for Justice (SFJ), urged Hindus in Canada to leave the country.
In a recently surfaced online video message amidst diplomatic tensions between Canada and India, Pannun emphatically declares that Hindus have supposedly "repudiated" their loyalty towards Canada and ought to depart from the nation before the 29th of October.
Pannun, someone who has been designated as a terrorist in India, is wanted for a series of serious offenses. These include inciting riots and intentionally disturbing religious harmony, among other cases.
Arya raised a cautionary flag in a video shared on X, emphasizing that Pannun was deliberately attempting to incite Hindu-Canadians to provoke a rift between the Hindu and Sikh communities.
“I have heard from many Hindu-Canadians who are fearful after this targeted attack. I urge Hindu-Canadians to stay calm but vigilant. Please report any incident of Hinduphobia to your local law enforcement agencies,” appealed Arya, who is from Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s party.
He said he had been attacked by pro-Khalistan elements in recent months because of his Hindu faith.
Arya stated that the "vast majority" of Sikhs in Canada do not support the Khalistan movement, which seeks to establish a separate Sikh homeland in India.
“Most Sikh Canadians may not publicly condemn the Khalistan movement for several reasons but they are deeply connected to the Hindu-Canadian community. Canadian Hindus and Sikhs are connected through family relationships and shared social and cultural ties,” the MP said.
He reckoned that Pannun’s remarks against Hindus marked a “further escalation of the recent attacks on Hindu temples and public celebration of the assassination of (former Indian) Prime Minister Indira Gandhi by terrorists”.
“I can’t understand how glorification of terrorism or a hate crime targeting a religious group is allowed in the name of freedom of speech and expression,” the MP said.
Arya expressed concern over the fact that Pannu and other pro-Khalistan activists could “get away” by issuing such open threats against a minority community.
“There would be an outrage in Canada if a white supremacist attacked any group of marginalised Canadians asking them to get out of our country. But apparently this Khalistani leader can get away with this hate crime,” he further claimed.
Arya reckoned that Hindu-Canadians were considered “soft targets” by radicals since they chose to maintain a “low-profile”.
India’s Safety Advisory to its Citizens in Canada
Arya expressed worries regarding the well-being of Hindus in Canada soon after the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) of India urged its citizens residing in Canada to be cautious because of the presence of "anti-India activities and politically-condoned hate crimes".
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has triggered a major diplomatic storm after claiming that Indian government's “agents” could be behind the killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a designated terrorist in India and a pro-Khalistan separatist.
India has rejected the allegations as “absurd and motivated”.