MP suggests “foul play” in Sikh journalist death

Indian State MP of Sangrug (Punjab) Simranjeet Singh Mann has suggested “foul play” may have behind the “untimely” death of respected Punjab based journalist Preet Singh Saini, on 4th March after a sudden illness.

Saini, had over 106k subscribers on his Youtube journalism channel, was known to cover corruption of Punjab institutions and Indian central government, amplifying Sikh community concerns about government overreach. Saini was also a regular reporter on Gurbani Akhand Bani channel on Youtube, which has over 900k subscribers.

Mann, of the Shiromani Akali Dal party which advocates for Sikh sovereignty, tweeted on 5th March saying Saini passed in “suspicious circumstances”, with many echoing the view Saini would have been a target of the Indian State, and some suggesting he was poisoned. Saini’s passing came shortly after his latest in a series of videos claiming to expose corruption between the Indian State and Sikh representative orgs such as the SGPC (Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandakh Committe). Mann called for a “high level probe” into the death.

The death of Saini, which came after days of illness in Manipur hospital, comes after an ongoing militant crackdown by the Indian State against Sikh journalists, as well as evidence of India’s involvement in the murder of Sikh leader Shaheed (martyr) Bhai Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Surrey (Canada) and the planned murder of Gurpatwant Singh Pannun in New York (USA). The targeting of the Sikh diaspora has now been affirmed as a transnational anti-Sikh

The media censorship – particularly through targeting of Sikh journalists in India – seems to have been amped up since the 2023 #PunjabUnderSiege military operation.

Read more on India’s clampdown on Sikh media:

• Granthis and journalists among hundreds arrested by Punjab Police to quell day of protest | SikhPA

• (15) SikhPressAssociation on X: “After a raid of Sikh media figure Harsharan Kaur’s parental home, Punjab journalists have begun mass protests due to countless media personal being targeted by Indian authorities amid the ongoing #PunjabUnderSiege situation. Although @PunjabPoliceInd claimed this is untrue… https://t.co/V734kbV6Xd” / X (twitter.com)
• Facebook is Blocking Canadians’ Posts About the Assassination of a BC Sikh Leader. Their Posts Were Targeted by India’s Government. (pressprogress.ca)

Saini was a known affiliate of the late Deep Sidhu, a respected actor turned activist who became a beloved Sikh icon during the 2020 #FarmersProtest movement. Deep Sidhu also died in suspicious circumstances in 2022. He was also known to be critical of the notorious political Badal family and a supporter of Sant Jarnail Singh Khalsa Bhindranwale, the revered Sikh leader central to the historic incidents of 1980s in Punjab, slain by the Indian Army as part of the 1984 State perpetrated Sikh genocide.

Comparisons have been made between the way Saini passed and the suspicious death of Bhai Avtar Singh Khanda, the UK Sikh activist who is believed to have been poisoned.

It is unclear if any further information on his death will come via an autopsy or other means of inquiry.