Banning Lawrence Bishnoi Network Must Include Transparency
September 30th, 2025
Justice For All Canada applauds the Canadian government for officially listing the Bishnoi Gang as a terrorist entity under the Criminal Code. Canadian law enforcement has concluded that Indian intelligence used this network to carry out operations in Canada against individuals viewed as political threats. This includes the killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar in 2023, which Canada linked to agents of India’s right-wing Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government.
Human rights advocates and organizations have raised awareness about the group’s illegal activities, targeting of diaspora members (particularly Sikh activists in Canada), cross-border extortion, intimidation and killings. Justice For All Canada has previously contributed policy recommendations on the issue of Indian foreign interference to Canada’s Foreign Interference Commission. We highlighted the needs of Indian communities in Canada who are being targeted by foreign interference, in particular Muslims, Sikhs, Christians and Dalits.
The Bishnoi’s operations intersect with Hindutva-aligned actors in India, an ultra-nationalist Hindu supremacist political ideology and project promoted by the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and the BJP. A climate of impunity prevails in India, where state-linked enforcers have targeted and abused non-Hindu communities with the backing of BJP government officials.
As Canada strengthens its laws against transnational crime, it must follow up with full transparency on the Indian state’s interference in Canada. India’s targeting of domestic non-Hindu communities is inseparable from its going after diaspora voices abroad. Canada should not empower India’s persecution of non-Hindus through bilateral agreements. Alongside human rights partners, our Save India campaign continues to call on the Canadian government to:
Counterterrorism listings, while a step in the right direction, are ultimately insufficient to ensure the safety of diaspora communities. This would require confronting the state actors that enable and direct these harms.
Justice For All Canada applauds the Canadian government for officially listing the Bishnoi Gang as a terrorist entity under the Criminal Code. Canadian law enforcement has concluded that Indian intelligence used this network to carry out operations in Canada against individuals viewed as political threats. This includes the killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar in 2023, which Canada linked to agents of India’s right-wing Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government.
Human rights advocates and organizations have raised awareness about the group’s illegal activities, targeting of diaspora members (particularly Sikh activists in Canada), cross-border extortion, intimidation and killings. Justice For All Canada has previously contributed policy recommendations on the issue of Indian foreign interference to Canada’s Foreign Interference Commission. We highlighted the needs of Indian communities in Canada who are being targeted by foreign interference, in particular Muslims, Sikhs, Christians and Dalits.
The Bishnoi’s operations intersect with Hindutva-aligned actors in India, an ultra-nationalist Hindu supremacist political ideology and project promoted by the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and the BJP. A climate of impunity prevails in India, where state-linked enforcers have targeted and abused non-Hindu communities with the backing of BJP government officials.
As Canada strengthens its laws against transnational crime, it must follow up with full transparency on the Indian state’s interference in Canada. India’s targeting of domestic non-Hindu communities is inseparable from its going after diaspora voices abroad. Canada should not empower India’s persecution of non-Hindus through bilateral agreements. Alongside human rights partners, our Save India campaign continues to call on the Canadian government to:
- Condition any advancement of its Indo-Pacific Strategy partnership with India on verifiable human rights safeguards.
- Launch an investigation into the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) chapters operating in Canada to determine whether they provide direct or indirect support to persecution of Muslims, Sikhs, Christians and Dalits in India. This emboldens the targeting of those same groups in Canada.
- Use parliamentary oversight to commit to regular, public reporting on incidents of transnational repression linked to India, including the role of criminal groups.
- Ensure that anti-terror tools are not misused against community activists and continue to protect those at risk of transnational repression.
- Investigate and impose Magnitsky-style sanctions on Indian officials responsible for foreign interference, for example, India’s Home Minister Amit Shah.
Counterterrorism listings, while a step in the right direction, are ultimately insufficient to ensure the safety of diaspora communities. This would require confronting the state actors that enable and direct these harms.