Leaders of Dal Khalsa, Shiromani Akali Dal Amritsar and Panch Pardani Jatha — including Simranjit Singh Mann, Kanwar Pal Singh, Narien Singh and Paramjit Singh Mand — said that justice in the cases of Hardeep Singh Nijjar and Gurpatwant Singh Pannun should not be sacrificed at the altar of diplomacy, nor should the indictment of perpetrators of crimes against humanity be used as a bargaining chip to secure trade deals.
At a press conference today, the Sikh bodies cautiously welcomed the indictment of Nikhil Gupta by the US Department of Justice, who has accepted involvement in an attempted murder of Gurpatwant Singh Pannun.
The leaders pointed out that, replicating the pattern of coordinated violence and repression seen in the diaspora, an atmosphere of chaos and instability is also being created in Punjab through extortion, targeted killings and other violence under the guise of gang wars. They said this “bogey of gangsterism” has been allowed to raise its head under a sinister design.
They added that following the pattern used abroad, some attempts have been made to target Sikh leaders and other struggling sections in Punjab as well, but these attempts have failed so far.