Nijjar killing: Canada court orders mandatory detention for four accused, bail reports denied

A Canadian official has refuted reports circulating on social media that the four accused, Karan Brar, Kamalpreet Singh, Karanpreet Singh and Amandeep Singh, have been granted bail

• India Weekly
• 10 January, 2025

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By: India Weekly

A COURT in Canada has subjected all four Indians accused in the killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a Khalistan activist, to mandatory detention orders.

Ann Seymour, a senior official at the Canadian Ministry of Attorney General, said that a British Columbia court, which ordered the mandatory detention, has scheduled the next hearing for February.

She refuted reports circulating on social media claiming that the four accused, Karan Brar, Kamalpreet Singh, Karanpreet Singh and Amandeep Singh, have been granted bail and released.

The detention orders mean that they will remain in confinement till the trial commences.

The accused are set to appear on February 11 for a case management conference, and the trial dates are expected to be set accordingly.

Nijjar was shot dead on June 18, 2023, by masked assailants in the parking lot of a gurudwara in suburban Vancouver.

In May last year, Karan Brar, Kamalpreet Singh and Karanpreet Singh were arrested from Edmonton and nearby areas. Amandeep Singh was charged days later while he was in custody of the Peel Regional Police.

Several months after Nijjar assassination, Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau had announced that they have “credible allegations” connecting Indian intelligence to the slaying.

India dismissed the allegations as “absurd” and responded furiously, briefly curbing visas for Canadians and forcing Ottawa to withdraw diplomats.

Matters came to a head last October when India withdrew its high commissioner and other “targeted” diplomats and officials from Canada in response to Ottawa’s attempt to link them to a probe into Nijjar killing. India also expelled of six Canadian diplomats.

Canada is home to some 770,000 Sikhs, who make up about two per cent of the country’s population, with a vocal minority calling for an independent state of Khalistan.