In a major breakthrough in the Hardeep Singh Nijjar murder case, Canadian police have arrested three persons who are members of an alleged hit squad. As per a report by Canadian media house CBC, the names of the persons arrested are Kamalpreet Singh, Karanpreet Singh and Karan Brar, all Sikh names.
The report also mentions that the three are members of a group which is associated with the gangster Lawrence Bishnoi. Notably, as per the NIA, Lawrence Bishnoi, Goldy Brar and several other gangsters have close links with the proscribed Babbar Khalsa International (BKI) and several other pro-Khalistani terrorist outfits.
This points towards the possibility that the murder of the Khalistani terrorist was the result of an inter-gang rivalry among Khalistanis, and not the work of the Indian government as alleged by Justin Trudeau government. However, CBC claimed that they were tasked by the government of India to kill Hardeep Singh Nijjar, without citing any evidence for the same.
As per the report by the Canadian public broadcaster, the three persons were arrested on Friday in police operations in at least two different provinces. “Sources said investigators identified the alleged hit squad members in Canada some months ago and have been keeping them under tight surveillance,” the report stated.
As per the police, the members of the hit squad could be involved in at least three other murder cases, including the shooting of an 11-year-old boy in Edmonton.
Kamalpreet Singh, Karanpreet Singh and Karan Brar have been charged with first-degree murder and conspiracy charges in the Nijjar murder case, as per documents submitted by the police at the court. The police are expected to release a statement later in the day.
The three accused are reportedly Indian citizens who went to Canada after 2021, and some of them used student visas. However, neither of them enrolled in any educational institution after arriving in Canada, and none of them obtained permanent residency.
Hardeep Singh Nijjar, the head of Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdwara Sahib and a wanted Khalistani terrorist in India, was shot dead in Surrey by unidentified assailants on June 18 this year in Surrey, British Columbia. On 18th September, in a bizarre move, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau blamed India for the murder, causing diplomatic relations between the two countries to nosedive. India categorically rejected the claims and urged the Canadian government to take strict action against anti-India elements on its soil. Since then, Canadian govt has been maintaining that Nijjar was killed on the orders of Indian govt, without furnishing any evidence.
