India Threatens Sikhs in Australia

Australian media has reported the long arm of the Indian state is reaching Australia, silencing critics and threatening members of the diaspora. Several Australian Sikhs have said Indian authorities visited their families in India and threatened them over the Khalistan Referendum due to their loved ones’ activism overseas. Two Australians said they were detained in India and questioned after accusations they were involved in the Khalistan movement — one said he was even stopped from returning to Sydney for several days. One man said he received calls from an Indian intelligence officer while in Australia. Another man claimed he was slapped with criminal charges in India when he did not stop his activism in Australia. He said he was eventually granted a personal protection visa because the Australian govt. deemed his life would be in danger if he returned to India. A Four Corners investigation has uncovered the promotion of far-right Hindu ideology, the quiet amassing of political power, and never-before-reported details of a ‘nest of spies’ as described by Australian Security Intelligence Organization Director-General Mike Burgess in 2021 (SDW Vol. 2 Issue 19, Story 2). At least four intelligence officers were asked to leave Australia. Some had been posing as diplomats in India’s high commission. The expulsions were done secretly; they left one by one. Politicians watching this closely say the sheer number of expulsions could put India on par with countries such as Russia and China, notorious for breaking protocols overseas.