Canada says it is taking serious note of SFJ threat to Air India flights, launches probe
SFJ leader Gurpatwant Pannun in a recent video had warned Sikhs that their life may be in danger if they took Air India flights from November 19 onward
Canada has told India that the security of Air India flights operating to and from the country has been beefed up and that a probe has been launched into a video warning Sikhs not to take flights operated by the airline from November 19.
“We take every threat seriously, especially when it concerns airlines,” Canada’s transportation minister Pablo Rodriguez told reporters in Ottawa.
According to Toronto Star, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police is probing the threat.
“The RCMP takes all threats to national security very seriously, including threats made online,” a spokesperson of RCMP was quoted as saying.
Canada’s communique comes after Gurpatwant Pannun, the general counsel of pro-Khalistani group Sikhs for Justice (SFJ), in a November 4 video warned Sikhs to avoid taking Air India flights from November 19 onward, telling them that “your lives may be in danger”.
In a statement issued with the video, the Khalistani leader urged Sikhs to support a ‘global blockade’ of the airline from Vancouver to London.
“We are asking Sikh people not to fly via Air India. From November 19, there will be a global blockade. Air India won’t be allowed to operate. Sikh people, don’t travel by Air India after November 19. Your life can be in danger,” he says in the video.
In another statement issued on November 9, Pannun called for a boycott of the airline.
The Indian government has designated Pannun, involved in anti-India activities and campaigns, as a terrorist.
Terming the video as a “terrorist threat” the Indian government had urged Canada to take requisite action against Pannun and his aides.
Pannun, however, has denied any intention to cause violence or threaten through to the video.