Indian officials have asked Canada to enhance security for Air India flights amid threats issued by the pro-Khalistan Sikhs for Justice group. Secessionist leader Gurpatwant Pannun urged people to avoid flying with the Indian carrier after November 19 as their 'lives may be in danger'. The missive – shared in Punjabi – also called for a ‘global blockade’ of the airline from Vancouver to London.
“We shall take up the threat against Air India flights originating from and terminating in Canada, with the concerned Canadian authorities," Indian High Commissioner to Ottawa, Sanjay Kumar Verma, told Hindustan Times.
Air India currently operates multiple flights per week from Delhi to Vancouver and Toronto.
Gurpatwant Singh Pannun – a designated terrorist in India – recently claimed that Air India would not be allowed to operate on November 19. He noted that the final of the “World Terror Cup" would also be played on this date and claimed that the Delhi airport would be closed and renamed when Punjab was ‘liberated’.
"We are asking the Sikh people not to fly via Air India. From November 19, there will be a global blockade. Air India won't be allowed to operate. Sikh people, don't travel by Air India after November 19. Your life can be in danger…The name of this airport will be Shahid Beant Singh, Shahid Satwant Singh Khalistan airport, when Punjab will be liberated," Pannun can be seen saying in the now viral clip.
The development comes amid growing strain on India-Canada ties. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has accused Indian government agents of involvement in the killing of separatist leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar – a claim that New Delhi dismissed as ‘absurd’.
"Where is the evidence? Where is the conclusion of the investigation? I would go a step further and say now the investigation has already been tainted. A direction has come from someone at a high level to say India or Indian agents are behind it," Verma told the Globe and Mail newspaper on Friday.
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