New Delhi: Khalistani terrorist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun on Monday warned passengers not to fly on Air India flights from November 1 to 19. He asserted that an attack could take place on an Air India flight during the specified dates, which coincide with the “40th anniversary of the Sikh genocide,” India Today reported.
This is the second time that the founder of Sikhs for Justice (SFJ), who holds dual citizenship in Canada and the US, has issued such a threat. He had done it around the same time last year.
Pannun’s fresh threat comes amid several airlines in India receiving multiple threat calls about potential bombings, all of which turned out to be hoaxes. It has also come at a time when India and Canada are engaged in a murky diplomatic row following Canada’s allegations of India targeting Khalistani elements in the country, including the murder of another terrorist, Hardeep Singh Nijjar.
In November 2023, Pannun released a video that Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport would be renamed and would remain closed on November 19, warning people against flying on Air India that day. The National Investigation Agency charged him with criminal conspiracy, promoting enmity between different groups on the grounds of religion, and various offences under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA). In December last year, he threatened to attack the Parliament on or before December 13, following reports of an alleged foiled plot to kill him. December 13 marks the anniversary of the terrorist attack on the Parliament in 2001. He also threatened to kill Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann and Director General of State Police Gaurav Yadav on Republic Day this year. He also urged gangsters to unite and launch an attack on Mann on January 26.
Notably, Pannun has been designated a terrorist by the Ministry of Home Affairs since July 2020 on charges of sedition and secessionism, as he leads SFJ, a group advocating for a separate sovereign Sikh state.