New Delhi: Three Indian nationals have been arrested and charged with being a part of the alleged hit squad that had killed Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar, Canadian Police informed.
The three accused have been identified as Karan Brar (22), Kamalpreet Singh (22) and Karanpreet Singh (28). Canadian police have released their photographs too.
The accused lived as non-permanent residents in Alberta for three to five years, Canadian police informed media.
“The murder remains very much under active investigation,” Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) Assistant Commissioner David Teboul told at a presser on Friday.
The Canadian police also told media that separate and distinct investigations, including investigating connections to the Government of India, are ongoing and not limited to the involvement of the three arrested.
According to court documents, they have been charged with first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder, NDTV reported.
Nijjar (45) was a Canadian citizen who was wanted in India on various terror charges. He was shot dead last June by masked gunmen outside a gurdwara in Surrey. The Sikh separatist leader’s killing had led to a diplomatic row between India and Canada. While Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau alleged the role of “Indian agents” in the murder, India had rejected the charge and called it “absurd” and “motivated”. Both countries had even expelled diplomats of the other country.
Earlier this week another fresh row erupted between both countries after separatist slogans on ‘Khalistan’ were raised at an event addressed by the Canadian PM. New Delhi had summoned Canada’s Deputy High Commissioner and lodged a strong protest.
