Despite complaints from Narendra Modi’s government and Canadian Hindutva groups, more than 75,000 Canadian Sikhs voted in Khalistan Referendum Phase II in Mississauga, supporting Punjab’s separation from India to form an independent country for Sikhs.
The Punjab Referendum Commission (PRC) allowed Sikhs from the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) to vote at the Paul Coffee Arena in Mississauga, a Canadian government-owned facility, at 9 a.m.
A few Canadian Hindus donned Hindutva insignia and chanted that Modi will make India a “Hindu country” during the November 6 Khalistan Referendum polling.
“Today Canadian democracy prevailed and Modi’s fascism lost because Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s government stood with the Sikhs’ right to freedom of expression in the face of great pressure from all Indian quarters,” said Sikhs for Justice (SFJ) General Counsel Gurpatwant Singh Pannun.
“After 110,000 votes on September 18, 75,000 plus Canadian Sikhs once again proved their will to liberate Punjab from Indian rule to construct Khalistan in line with the desires of thousands of Sikh martyrs who have laid down their lives for the cause,” stated the New York lawyer.
After over 110,000 Canadian Sikhs voted in the first phase of the Khalistan Referendum on September 18, 2022, and several thousand were unable to vote owing to a large turnout and voting closing at 5 p.m., SFJ announced the second phase.
After the polling on September 18, the Khalistan support group Sikhs for Justice started getting ready for the second phase of the referendum, which will try to get international support for separating Punjab from India and declaring it a Sikh homeland.
India and Canada are at war after the September 18 election. The travel advice came four days after India warned its students living in Canada or planning to visit that Canada had become a hotbed of Khalistan sympathizers and anti-India activities.
In an unusual action, Canada warned its people to avoid all travel to Gujarat, Punjab, and Rajasthan, which border Pakistan, due to the “presence of landmines” and “unpredictable security situation.”
India’s External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson, Arindam Bagchi stated India had conveyed significant concerns with Canada about the September 18 Brampton Khalistan Referendum.
India’s External Affairs Ministry called the SFJ’s Khalistan Referendum a “farcical exercise” and strongly opposed “politically motivated exercises by extremist elements” in a friendly country like Canada.
Canada’s statement that it would not intervene in peaceful Sikh activity infuriated India.
