CHANDIGARH: Khalistani terrorist Inderjit Singh Gosal, a close aide of the designated terrorist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun of Sikhs for Justice (SFJ) — which is banned in India — has reportedly been arrested in Canada. Gosal was the principal organizer of the so-called Khalistan referendum in Canada.
Sources within intelligence agencies have claimed that 36-year-old Gosal was detained in Ottawa on multiple charges related to firearms possession. He had also served as Pannun's personal security officer (PSO). His arrest comes shortly after India and Canada last week agreed to adopt a collaborative approach towards a new chapter in bilateral ties, including working closely to combat terrorism and transnational crimes.
Earlier, Gosal was arrested in November last year in connection with a violent attack at a Hindu temple in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) and was later conditionally released by the Peel Regional Police (PRP). The incident occurred when Khalistani sympathizers attacked devotees at the Hindu Sabha Mandir in Brampton. The local police took action after the demonstrations turned violent. Officials said Gosal was acting as the principal organizer of the so-called Khalistan referendum in Canada.
Pannun, who holds dual US-Canadian citizenship, hails from Punjab.
It is learned that last Thursday, National Security Advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval and his Canadian counterpart Nathalie Drouin held wide-ranging talks in New Delhi, focusing on repairing bilateral relations that had come under severe strain following a diplomatic spat over the killing of Khalistani militant Hardeep Singh Nijjar. India-Canada ties hit rock bottom in 2023 after then Prime Minister Justin Trudeau alleged a potential Indian link to Nijjar’s killing. In October last year, India recalled its high commissioner and five other diplomats after Ottawa attempted to link them to the Nijjar case.