Canada Hosts Khalistan Referendum Amid Authority Concerns

Toronto: The separatist Khalistan Referendum will take place at a municipal plaza in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, after authorities said they could not control the use of the public space.

This first referendum organized by the secessionist group Sikhs for Justice (SFJ) will be only the second held on government property in Canada, a matter that India has already complained about to Global Affairs Canada, the foreign ministry.

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In an interview with CityNews, Calgary’s Indo-Canadian Mayor Jyoti Gondek said, “Many events occur on Municipal Plaza because it’s a public space. These are not events we sanction or approve. The public can gather and do what they wish as a community.”

She added that it was “not something we can control or patrol.”

Ian Fleming, director of corporate properties and buildings for the City of Calgary, stated, “Individuals and organizations can use the Plaza without permission, application, or permit if they adhere to the guidelines of appropriate activities and behavior.”

Ahead of the referendum on Sunday, the Plaza already features a large poster showing Talwinder Singh Parmar, considered the mastermind of the 1985 Air India flight 182 bombing, and Hardeep Singh Nijjar, SFJ’s principal organizer for British Columbia, who was murdered in Surrey, BC, on June 18 last year.

Nijjar, labeled a terrorist in India, never faced charges in Canada. His killing led to strained ties between India and Canada after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau stated on September 18, 2023, that there were “credible allegations” linking Indian agents to the murder.

India’s High Commission in Ottawa officially protested the use of public property for a separatist event targeting the country’s territorial integrity.

The last time a government facility was registered for the referendum was at Tamanawis Secondary School in Surrey, BC. However, a week before the scheduled date, the Surrey District School Board canceled the rental due to a violation of the rental agreement.

The referendum was ultimately held on September 10 last year at the Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdwara in Surrey. Prior to that, it was organized on September 18, 2022, at the Gore Meadows Community Centre, a municipal property in Brampton in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA).

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