Sikhs being harassed by India warns Canadian national security expert

A former national security analyst in Canada’s federal government has warned that the Sikh community in Canada is being subjected to intimidation and espionage by the Indian government.

Stephanie Carvin, who is now professor of international affairs at Carleton University, made the comments to The Globe and Mail newspaper, after Canada’s Chinese community, who face similar intimidation from the Chinese government, called for a dedicated helpline to report such instances.

“The worst-affected community is probably the Chinese community right now but the Sikh community is subject to this kind of harassment or at least surveillance by Indian authorities or those connected to them,” Prof. Carvin said, adding there has also been alleged intimidation in the Eritrean-Canadian community and the Tamil-Canadian community.

The comments come after harassment and intimidation of Sikhs by the Indian state has come to light in several other countries around the world.

In October this year, the Consulate General of India in Hamburg, Germany was discovered to be asking people to provide the names and addresses of Sikh diaspora in Germany; a revelation which came after two high-profile cases in which Indian nationals were found to be spying on the Sikh community in Germany.

Even social media companies Facebook, Instagram and Twitter have been found to be censoring the voices of Sikh diaspora all over the world on their platforms, due to violating Indian law. Many believe this censorship came at the behest of the Indian government.

At the time of writing, the Indian government is also using violent tactics against farmers protesting new laws, which seek to take control of their crops and diminish their rights.