Justice For All Canada Officially Calls on Canada to Sanction India’s Home Minister Amit Shah for Gross Human Rights Violations
March 17, 2025
Toronto, Canada – Justice For All Canada is calling on the Canadian government to impose sanctions against Amitbhai Anilchandra Shah (Amit Shah), Minister of Home Affairs and a senior leader of the ruling right-wing Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in India, for his direct involvement in grave human rights violations and communal violence against minorities. Justice For All Canada has formally submitted a request to Global Affairs Canada urging the imposition of targeted sanctions under the Justice for Victims of Corrupt Foreign Officials Act (Magnitsky Law) or alternatively the Special Economic Measures Act.
Amit Shah holds a central role in state-led repression against India’s minorities, journalists and activists. His tenure has been marked by systematic crackdowns on civil liberties, the criminalization of dissent and the use of state forces to silence political opposition. As Home Minister, Shah has overseen policies that have emboldened security forces to commit widespread abuses, including mass detentions, enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings. His involvement in the 2002 Gujarat pogrom, in which more than 1,000 people—mostly Muslims—were killed in sectarian violence under his and Narendra Modi’s leadership, remains one of the most glaring examples of impunity for state-sanctioned crimes against humanity in India.
Under Shah’s direction, India has also escalated transnational repression beyond its borders. Recent testimony from Canadian Deputy Foreign Affairs Minister David Morrison confirmed that Shah has been orchestrating intimidation, violence and surveillance of Sikh and other dissident communities in Canada, a direct threat to diaspora groups and Canadian sovereignty. Canadian intelligence has also implicated agents of the Indian government in the targeted assassination of Canadian citizen Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a Sikh activist murdered in British Columbia in June 2023.
Canada has previously imposed sanctions on government officials from various countries for violating human rights, including Russia, Myanmar, Iran, and China. Failure to act against Indian officials responsible for similar crimes would signal an unacceptable double standard. The use of Magnitsky-style sanctions is a critical tool in ensuring that perpetrators are held accountable, regardless of their power or political status.
Canada’s current and next government must take immediate steps to sanction Amit Shah and demonstrate that Canada’s commitment to human rights is not selective, especially as it deepens ties with India through its Indo-Pacific Strategy. As India intensifies its authoritarian crackdown on minorities and political opposition, the urgency for international accountability is heightened by Genocide Watch’s genocide alert, warning of escalating risks for Indian Muslims and other marginalized communities.
Toronto, Canada – Justice For All Canada is calling on the Canadian government to impose sanctions against Amitbhai Anilchandra Shah (Amit Shah), Minister of Home Affairs and a senior leader of the ruling right-wing Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in India, for his direct involvement in grave human rights violations and communal violence against minorities. Justice For All Canada has formally submitted a request to Global Affairs Canada urging the imposition of targeted sanctions under the Justice for Victims of Corrupt Foreign Officials Act (Magnitsky Law) or alternatively the Special Economic Measures Act.
Amit Shah holds a central role in state-led repression against India’s minorities, journalists and activists. His tenure has been marked by systematic crackdowns on civil liberties, the criminalization of dissent and the use of state forces to silence political opposition. As Home Minister, Shah has overseen policies that have emboldened security forces to commit widespread abuses, including mass detentions, enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings. His involvement in the 2002 Gujarat pogrom, in which more than 1,000 people—mostly Muslims—were killed in sectarian violence under his and Narendra Modi’s leadership, remains one of the most glaring examples of impunity for state-sanctioned crimes against humanity in India.
Under Shah’s direction, India has also escalated transnational repression beyond its borders. Recent testimony from Canadian Deputy Foreign Affairs Minister David Morrison confirmed that Shah has been orchestrating intimidation, violence and surveillance of Sikh and other dissident communities in Canada, a direct threat to diaspora groups and Canadian sovereignty. Canadian intelligence has also implicated agents of the Indian government in the targeted assassination of Canadian citizen Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a Sikh activist murdered in British Columbia in June 2023.
Canada has previously imposed sanctions on government officials from various countries for violating human rights, including Russia, Myanmar, Iran, and China. Failure to act against Indian officials responsible for similar crimes would signal an unacceptable double standard. The use of Magnitsky-style sanctions is a critical tool in ensuring that perpetrators are held accountable, regardless of their power or political status.
Canada’s current and next government must take immediate steps to sanction Amit Shah and demonstrate that Canada’s commitment to human rights is not selective, especially as it deepens ties with India through its Indo-Pacific Strategy. As India intensifies its authoritarian crackdown on minorities and political opposition, the urgency for international accountability is heightened by Genocide Watch’s genocide alert, warning of escalating risks for Indian Muslims and other marginalized communities.