Australia needs to take stand against rise of Khalistan movement

CANBERRA: The recent surge in ‘Khalistani’ activities in Australia — to the extent of the ‘Kill India’ rally and open threats to Indian diplomats — is a grave concern that needs to be addressed on Canberra’s part by taking a firm stand against the extremist elements, Zafar Bashir wrote in a piece at The Epoch Times. On July 8, the ‘Kill India’ rally was held in Australia’s Melbourne by the ‘Sikhs for Justice’ (SFJ).

Earlier, a poster was also circulated on social media which had pictures of both diplomats and the text reads "Faces of Shaheed Nijjar's killers in Australia." Nijjar was the head of the Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdwara Sahib in Surrey, Canada. He was also the chief of the separatist organisation Khalistan Tiger Force (KTF).

Punjab, after being sliced into two parts, saw some of the worst violence. With Sikhs struggling for political and cultural autonomy, the Khalistan movement gained prominence.

The 1980s witnessed the worst insurgencies, during which some Sikh separatists in Punjab committed a series of human rights abuses, including the massacre of civilians, indiscriminate bombings, and attacks on minority Hindus, The Epoch Times reported citing Human Rights Watch. SFJ, in its London Declaration in August 2018, announced it would hold the first-ever non-binding referendum among the global Sikh community on the question of secession from India and re-establishing Punjab as an independent country.

Australia too has witnessed the expansion of the movement in the name of the Khalistan Referendum, with Melbourne’s Federation Square seeing a hefty affray between Khalistani supporters and people of the Indian community in which the two groups resorted to violence, The Epoch Times reported.

Later, three men were arrested by the Melbourne East Neighbourhood Policing Team in connection with the brawl. Prior to the Khalistan referendum voting on January 29, three Hindu temples were also vandalised in Australia, making the Indian government worried about its diplomatic ties with the country.

The second and third phases of voting took place in Brisbane and Sydney, respectively, amid stiff resistance from the Indian government to stop Sikhs from holding the referendum in Australia, The Epoch Times reported. In January this year, Australian Member of Parliament Cate Faehrmann (Greens Party) moved multiple resolutions supporting the Khalistan Referendum and Sikhs For Justice in Australian Parliament.

She stated that Sikhs have full rights and support from the Australian government to hold and conduct referendums to liberate their sovereign state. Greens MP David Shoebridge has also expressed his interest in the referendum by attending the Sydney voting. However, while Australia is a free country, the recent ‘Kill India’ rally held in Melbourne by SFJ on July 8, 2023, called into question the safety of Indian diplomats, including the High Commissioner of India to Australia, after the rally’s promotional posters labelled them as alleged “killers” of Hardeep Singh Nijjar.

According to Zafar Bashir — the author of the piece at The Epoch Times — the Australian government needs to take a stand against the “budding Khalistan Movement” in Australia. Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese last visited India in March. Though he said, he was keen to further deepen Canberra’s multifaceted relationship with New Delhi at a time of extraordinary growth and dynamism, especially in areas of trade, security, and people-to-people links.

However, his words did not meet his actions, The Epoch Times stated. Today, when the threat lingers upon a country’s diplomats, the silence of Australian authorities is deafening. Meanwhile, UK government officials have already put forth their stance against any attack on the Indian High Commission. Notably, all the previous rallies and protests of SFJ have always followed a record number of violent activities. Thus, it becomes all the more important to take significant steps to protect and provide security to the Australian citizens and diplomats if only Australia is keen to maintain a healthy diplomatic relationship with India, The Epoch Times stated.