Banned pro-Khalistani group Sikhs for Justice (SFJ) has announced a door-to-door campaign for registration of voters supporting its separatist agenda called ‘Referendum 2020’. Anti-terrorist agencies have alerted the law-enforcement agencies in the states after the announcement.
https://twitter.com/IANSKhabar/status/1306194612181241857?ref_src=twsrc%5EtfwThe US-based pro-Khalistani group has come up with a new strategy after it failed to attract supporters for ‘Referendum 2010’ on Canadian and Russian portals. The group plans to recruit 1000 ambassadors for Referendum 2020 who will be provided with a monthly stipend of Rs 7,500.
https://twitter.com/IANSKhabar/status/1306194725242843136?ref_src=twsrc%5EtfwThe SFJ is aiming to cover 12,000 villages in Punjab within 30 days starting from September 21. The extremist group had announced earlier that they plan to hold Referendum 2020 in November this year. It has selected Punjab, Delhi and Jammu and Kashmir to launch its online voter registration on July 4. SFJ’s General Counsel Gurpatwant Singh Pannun who is is a designated terrorist, made the announcement about Referendum 2020 today and said that India is ‘disenfranchising’ the people of Punjab by blocking the access of websites and mobile apps of the group. The Ministry of Home Affairs had declared the SFJ an unlawful association under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act. Its leaders including, Pannun, Najjar were also declared as terrorists under the Act.
The terrorist group had earlier tried to lure farmers of Punjab by offering Rs 3,500 to each farmer as grant ahead of Referendum 2020. The group had announced that it would be providing money on a monthly basis to farmers who could not pay their loans. The MHA had ordered the properties of SFJ leaders to be attached earlier this month on the recommendation of the National Investigating Agency (NIA).
The SFJ is also reportedly trying to mobilise the Sikh diaspora and for the at purpose it is organising meetings in the US to further its agenda. The terrorist group also has the backing of Pakistan which provides it monetary as well as logistic support.