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Canada’s spy agency has said that India’s alleged foreign interference activities have been driven by concerns of pro-Khalistan extremism emerging from Canada, acknowledging that some extremists use Canada as a base for planning violence in India.
The admission is in the section on Politically Motivated Religious Extremism or PMVE in the Canadian Security Intelligence Service or CSIS’ annual report to Parliament for 2024, which was tabled in the House of Commons on Friday but only published publicly on Wednesday.
“Since the mid-1980s, the PMVE threat in Canada has manifested primarily through Canada-based Khalistani extremists (CBKEs) seeking to use and support violent means to create an independent nation state called Khalistan, largely within Punjab, India,” the report said.
“While there were no CBKE-related attacks in Canada in 2024, ongoing involvement in violent activities by CBKEs continues to pose a national security threat to Canada and Canadian interests. In particular, real and perceived Khalistani extremism emerging from Canada continues to drive Indian foreign interference activities in Canada,” the report noted.
“Some Canadians participate in legitimate and peaceful campaigning to support the Khalistan movement. Non-violent advocacy for an independent state of Khalistan is not considered extremism. Only a small group of individuals are considered Khalistani extremists because they continue to use Canada as a base for the promotion, fundraising or planning of violence primarily in India,” it added, in a significant official acceptance by Canada of its territory being used to potentially foment terrorism in India.
