New Delhi: New allegations have emerged identifying specific Indian consular officials in Vancouver as key facilitators in the June 2023 assassination of Khalistani leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar. According to reports citing national security and law enforcement sources, these officials allegedly utilised their diplomatic cover to gather intelligence that assisted in the fatal shooting in Surrey, BC.

'Visa Officer' and the RAW Connection

Central to the investigation is Kanwaljit Singh, who was officially accredited as a visa officer at the Indian Consulate in Vancouver. Authorities now believe Singh was an undercover operative for India's external intelligence agency, the Research and Analysis Wing (RAW).

Sources told Canadian media outlet Globe and Mail that Singh allegedly used his position to monitor and gather information on Nijjar by engaging with members of the Indian diaspora in Surrey. This intelligence-gathering was reportedly conducted under the supervision of Manish, a career diplomat who served as Vancouver's Consul-General at the time and currently serves as India's Ambassador to Cyprus.

Bishnoi Gang and the 'New Delhi Link'

The investigation suggests a complex hierarchy of communication stretching from Canada to India:

Intelligence Transfer: Information gathered in Vancouver was allegedly passed to a RAW officer in New Delhi.

Mastermind Identified: Sources identified this New Delhi-based officer as Vikash Yadav, the same individual named in a US indictment for a foiled plot to kill a Sikh activist in New York.

Criminal Proxy: Yadav reportedly communicated with the Lawrence Bishnoi organised-crime group, a prominent Indian gang. A Canada-based member of this syndicate is then believed to have arranged the logistics for Nijjar's killing.

Diplomatic Fallout Amid Trade Talks

These revelations surface at a sensitive time for Prime Minister Mark Carney, who is currently in India attempting to reset a bilateral relationship that has been "frayed" since the June 18, 2023, shooting.

Carney's visit aims to secure a free-trade deal by year-end and diversify Canada’s economic interests.

While the federal government expelled six diplomats in October 2024, only High Commissioner Sanjay Verma was publicly named at the time. The removal of Kanwaljit Singh from the accredited diplomats list occurred shortly thereafter, though his current whereabouts remain unknown.

Denial from New Delhi

The Indian government has consistently and vehemently denied any role in the conspiracy. Speaking in Mumbai on Saturday, India's High Commissioner to Canada, Dinesh Patnaik, insisted that there has "never been any foreign interference" by Indian officials in Canada.

"It never happened," Patnaik told reporters, echoing New Delhi's long-standing position that Nijjar was a coordinator of violent attacks in India, a claim Kabul and Ottawa have frequently questioned due to a lack of shared evidence.

Intelligence Context

The Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) reportedly began monitoring the undercover RAW presence at the Vancouver consulate prior to the assassination.

Sources claim that in late July 2023, Canadian officials were alerted to wiretaps that captured conversations referring to the "successful elimination" of Nijjar, providing the evidentiary basis for the current diplomatic standoff.

As Prime Minister Carney prepares to meet with his Indian counterpart on Monday, the shadow of these investigative details continues to complicate efforts to achieve a meaningful diplomatic "thaw."