The revelation that the death of a man in Winnipeg last year may be linked to the Indian government’s alleged campaign of violence against Sikh Canadians has cast a international spotlight on the unsolved case.
On Monday, the RCMP and Canadian government officials accused Indian diplomats of criminal activities in Canada, including violence, threats and targeted killings.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Canadian officials expelled India’s top diplomat and five others because Indian government officials refused to co-operate in the criminal investigations. India swiftly retaliated by expelling six Canadian diplomats.
The RCMP has “clear and compelling” evidence that Indian government agents have engaged in criminal activities, Trudeau told a news conference in Ottawa.
“This includes clandestine information gathering techniques, coercive behaviour targeting South Asian Canadians, and involvement in over a dozen threatening and violent acts, including murder,” he said. “This is unacceptable.”
Tensions between Canada and India escalated after Canadian Sikh leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar was gunned down in his truck outside a gurdwara in Surrey, B.C., in June 2023. Three months later, Trudeau accused the Indian government of orchestrating the hit.
The Star’s Tonda MacCharles reported Monday that the mysterious killing of Sukhdool Singh Gill in Winnipeg in 2023 may also be linked to Indian government agents.
Here’s what we know about that case.
No arrests one year later
According to police, Gill was found dead in a home on Hazelton Drive in northwest Winnipeg around 10 a.m. on Sept. 20, 2023.
Winnipeg police said Gill’s death was deemed a homicide following a medical examination but did not disclose any details about the circumstances.
The killing came just two days after Trudeau revealed there were credible allegations that agents of the Indian government were behind the June 2023 killing of Nijjar, the Sikh activist.
Last month, around the first anniversary of Gill’s death, Winnipeg police renewed their appeal to anyone who knew him, including members of the South Asian community, for information about Gill’s whereabouts or personal interactions leading to the killing.
Police have not disclosed any information about a potential suspect or suspects. Reached by the Star on Tuesday, they declined to comment on the case because of the ongoing investigation.
Victim was alleged gang member
Gill, who went by the alias Sukha Duneke, resided in the Moga district of Punjab and was an alleged member of the Davinder Bambiha gang in India, according to reports by Indian media.
He was wanted in connection to cases of extortion, attempted murder and murder. In 2017, he reportedly fled to Canada using forged documents.
The week Gill was killed in Winnipeg, India’s top investigative body, the National Investigation Agency (NIA), identified him as one of 43 people on its wanted list and accused him of having ties to Khalistani groups.
Organized crime group claimed responsibility for Gill’s death
Among the accusations by Canada is that Indian government agents were working with a notorious crime group called the Bishnoi group to carry out targeted killings of dissidents in Canada. The gang’s leader, Lawrence Bishnoi, is in custody but has not been charged.
According to Indian media reports, Bishnoi was one of two gangsters who claimed responsibility on social media for Gill’s death, calling it revenge for previous gang-related killings in India.
The Bishnoi group has been linked to several high-profile crimes in India, including the fatal shooting of a Baba Siddique, a senior politician who was also known for his close ties to Bollywood, in Mumbai on Saturday and the 2022 killing of a Sidhu Moose Wala, a popular Punjabi rapper.
With files from Tonda MacCharles and Serena Austin
