“The proposition of an independent Khalistan, in truth, is a backward idea from a backward time. It is a proposal without economic or democratic logic, unloved by the very Punjabis whose lives it would most directly affect. It is a fantasy rooted in religious bigotry and chauvinism, kept alive in Canada by thugs and political hustlers unbothered by the innocent lives that have been lost in its name,” Dossanjh and Majumdar said in the foreword.“It is a proposal hostile to Canada’s interest in seeing a united and prosperous India, and in that sense, threatens not just one country, but two. In the service of this cause, extremists animated by Pakistan seek to distort history and betray the vast majority of Sikhs who live in peace and freedom,” they added.“No matter how low the support for Khalistan sinks in India—and it has sunk very low indeed—the cause still survives in Pakistan, where jihadist groups have made common cause with Sikh separatists against their shared enemy, India,” the report said, adding, “An example is the leading Khalistani figure in Pakistan, Gopal Singh Chawla, who makes no bones about his friendly alliance with the Pakistani jihadist Hafiz Saeed, leader of the feared Lashkar-e-Taiba”.The report also questioned the maps of the proposed Khalistan, noting that they do not depict even “one inch [of] traditional Sikh lands in Pakistan—not to Lahore, where Maharaja Ranjit Singh ruled over a Sikh empire two hundred years ago, or even to Nankana Sahib, sacred birthplace of Guru Nanak, the first Sikh guru”.“It appears, then, that Pakistan wants the Sikhs to be free, but not in Pakistan. The separatists, in turn, clearly know where their patron sets the limits. Even drawing a map which presumes upon Pakistan’s generosity is a step too far—one that could sever the lifeline which has sustained the dream of Khalistan for so long,” it said.
Canadian study points to close Pakistan-Khalistani movement link
NEW DELHI: A study that exposes for the first time the close links between leaders of the Khalistani movement and Pakistan has been brought out by a Canada-based think-tank, even as politicians in the country appear to be sympathetic to some of “demands” of the Khalistanis.The report, released by the Macdonald-Laurier Institute and titled “Khalistan: A project of Pakistan”, alleges that Khalistan is a geopolitical project nurtured by Pakistan, and threatens the national security of not only Indians but also Canadians.The report assumes significance in the backdrop of Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s comments on the ongoing protests by farmers in India, which is being viewed as an effort to pander to the demands of hardliners in his country.“It might seem surprising that 35 years after Khalistani extremists bombed Air India Flight 182, the deadliest attack on aviation before 9/11, that a new generation of violent extremists has now emerged in Canada and India,” according to Terry Milewski, a noted Canadian journalist and author of the report.”It’s clear who’s really driving the Khalistan bus: Pakistan,” Milewski writes in the report. In truth, “the Khalistan movement has been going nowhere in the Sikhs’ home state,” it says.In a foreword to the report, Ujjal Dossanjh, former premier of British Columbia and former federal Liberal Cabinet Minister, and Shuvaloy Majumdar, MLI Program Director and Munk Senior Fellow for Foreign Policy, argue, “The Milewski report should be essential reading for any who wish to understand Pakistan’s influence in guiding the Khalistan proposition, its perversion of the Sikh faith, and its ongoing campaign of extremism and terrorism in two of the world’s important democracies.”
