The Indian government is facing renewed international scrutiny following a report by The Guardian, which says that the Modi administration is actively pursuing a coordinated campaign to suppress Sikh activists and dismantle the Khalistan movement on a global scale.
According to the report, the recent suspicious death of 35-year-old Sikh activist Avtar Singh Khanda in Birmingham has intensified questions over New Delhi’s conduct.
Indian media had previously accused Khanda of removing the Indian flag during a protest outside the Indian High Commission in London in March 2023, after which he reportedly became a target for authorities.
The Guardian noted that Khanda had been granted political asylum in the UK in 2016 after receiving threats from Indian intelligence agencies. His family has a history of persecution, with his father and uncle allegedly killed in extrajudicial executions in the 1990s over their support for Khalistan.
Friends of Khanda said he had been living in fear in the days leading up to his death, convinced he was being followed. His family also revealed that Indian authorities had detained his mother and sister as part of their search for separatist leader Amritpal Singh.
International legal expert Polak confirmed Khanda had faced credible death threats, while British forensic expert Dr Ashley Fegan Earle stated that the possibility of poisoning could not be entirely ruled out.
Demanding answers, Khanda’s relatives have called on the British government to authorise a second postmortem and a thorough investigation.
“We need to know how Avtar died despite so many threats,” said his relative, Jagjit Singh.
The report also highlighted that Khanda’s death occurred just weeks before several Khalistani activists were killed in Canada, fueling concerns of a coordinated global assassination campaign allegedly orchestrated by Indian intelligence services.
According to sources cited by The Guardian, Indian agencies are suspected of employing methods such as chemical agents, nerve toxins, and extrajudicial killings to intimidate and eliminate Sikh activists abroad.
Analysts argue that under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, India is increasingly relying on state terror tactics to stifle dissent, minority rights, and freedom of expression.
Observers warn that if these alleged practices continue unchecked, India risks transforming into a fascist state cloaked in democratic pretences and emerging as a serious threat to international peace.
The Indian government’s actions, critics say, reflect an undisguised hostility toward minorities and constitute grave violations of human rights.
