Who is Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, the Pro-Khalistan Lawyer in US?

On Tuesday, the Czech police showcased the very first video of the suspect in the "murder plot" against Gurpatwant Singh Pannun. The name of the Indian suspect is Nikhil Gupta.

Gurpatwant Singh Pannun is the spokesperson and legal advisor for SFJ. Pannun is the Sikh separatist holding dual citizenship of US and Canada. The Sikh is based in New York, and is the secessionist leader advocating the formation of Khalistan. Let's understand the man better.

Gurpatwant Singh Pannun

Gurpatwant Singh Pannun stands as one of they key leaders of the Khalistan movement. The movement demands for a seperate state to be separated from Punjab, based on religion and name it Khalistan.

Gurpatwant Singh Pannun is the legal advisor for Sikhs for Justice (SFJ). The SFJ aims to encourage the notion of a separate Sikh state.

In July 2020, Gurpatwant Singh Pannun was declared as a terrorist by the Ministry of Home Affairs. This declaration was made grounds of secessionism and sedition. An Interpol red notice had also been requested for him.

The Dual Citizenship

Gurpatwant Singh Pannun called himself as the dual citizen of Canada and the United States. Where was Pannun actually born? Well, it was the Khankot village of Amristar, Punjab, India, when Pannun was born and brought up.

Why has Pannun been in news?

Pannun has been consistently organizing events in various parts of the world like the United States, the United Kingdom, and Canada. Additionally, the man has also been a contributor in filing cases against Indian institutions and officials in the international courts. He alleged these officials of violating human rights against Sikhs.

There have been various terror instances in India for which Gurpatwant Singh Pannun has taken responsibility. In the year 2023, Pannun threatened Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi through a video during the PM's visit to Assam. In the same year, there were multiple news outlets saying that the man hid himself post the demise of three prominent Khalistani leaders.

So far, there have been multiple videos released by Pannun that censure India. He has also been accused of providing monetary rewards to the ones writing anti-India graffiti. 

Last year, another video came into light where Pannun warned the Indo-Canadian Hindus to leave Canada. The video was enough to attract huge condemnation from the Canadian officials and politicians For instance, Dominic LeBlanc, the Public Safety Minister of Canada called the video as "offensive and hateful".

It has also been reported that Gurpatwant Singh Pannun has made threats against Bhagwant Mann, the incumbent Chief Minister of Punjab. The man also urged the gangsters in the state to join hands with the organization named Sikhs for Justice in order to stop Bhagwant Mann and other politicians from hoisting the national flag in the Republic Day events. Gurpatwant Singh Pannun has been a frequent threat issuer.

Designated as a "terrorist"

In the year 2020, the Government of India designated Gurpatwant Singh Pannun as a terrorist. Moreover, the man's agricultural land as attached as per the Section 51A of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act. There are over 22 criminal cases against Pannun. Three of these cases are based on sedition in India.