WATCH: Khalistan flag displayed at Sikh parade in Canada and footage of Indira Gandhi’s assassination
A float depicting the assassination of former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi appears during the annual Sikh religious parade “Nagar Kirtan” in Brampton, Canada. The city of Brampton, Ontario is home to a large Sikh community, estimated at around 25% of the population.On October 31, 1984, then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi was assassinated by two Sikh bodyguards in retaliation for Operation Blue Star, which she ordered in June of that year.Between June 1 and 10, 1984, the Indian Army conducted Operation Blue Star at the Golden Temple complex in Amritsar, one of Sikhism’s holiest shrines, driving Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale and other pro-Khalistan extremists from the complex.ALSO READ | Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale: Sant or terrorist?In the early 1980s, Bhindranwale led a violent separatist movement that advocated the establishment of a sovereign Sikh state, Khalistan, in India’s only Sikh-majority state of Punjab.He was killed in action on June 6, 1984.Images depicting or glorifying the assassination of Indira Gandhi have appeared in Brampton and other Canadian cities in recent years.Reacting to a similar performance in 2023, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar explain“I think it speaks to a larger issue. Frankly, we don’t know why anyone would do this other than the demands of vote bank politics. I think there’s a larger underlying issue of providing space for separatists, extremists and people who advocate violence. I don’t think it’s good for relationships and it’s not good for Canada.”Canada has a large Sikh population—about 2.1% as of 2021—many of whom are of Indian origin.
