Sikhs are people who adhere to Sikhism, a monotheistic religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Guru Nanak. The term Sikh has its origin in the word śiṣya (शिष्य), meaning 'disciple' or 'student'.
The Khalistan movement is a Sikh separatist movement seeking to create a homeland for Sikhs by establishing a sovereign state, called Khālistān, in the Punjab region. The proposed state would consist of land that currently forms Punjab, India and Punjab, Pakistan.
Babbar Khalsa International, better known as Babbar Khalsa, is an organisation whose main objective is to create an independent Sikh country Khalistan. Its supporters see it as a resistance movement. The organisation has been banned and listed as a terrorist organisation in several countries such as India, Canada, USA, UK, Japan, Malaysia and European Union. It operates in Canada, Germany and the United Kingdom.
Talwinder Singh Parmar born in Kapurthala, Punjab, India was a militant, Canadian-Sikh terrorist and religious extremist. He was also the founder, leader, and Jathedar of Babbar Khalsa International, better known as Babbar Khalsa, a militant Sikh extremist group involved in the Khalistan movement.
Dal Khalsa is a Sikh organisation, based in the city of Amritsar. The organisation was formed in 1978 and came to prominence under the inspiration and time of Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale in 1981. The primary aim of Dal Khalsa is to achieve the independence of the Punjabi-speaking Sikh majority region of North West India through peaceful and democratic means in order to establish a sovereign Sikh state, Khalistan.
The Khalistan Commando Force (KCF) is a militant Khalistani organisation operating in the state of Punjab with prominent members based in Canada, the United Kingdom and Pakistan. Its objective is the creation of a Sikh independent state of Khalistan through armed struggle. According to the US State Department, and the Assistant Inspector General of the Punjab Police Intelligence Division, the KCF was responsible for many assassinations in India, including the 1995 assassination of Punjab Chief Minister Beant Singh. India has declared and banned KCF as a terrorist organisation.
The Khalistan Zindabad Force (KZF) is a religious group and is part of the Khalistan movement to create a separate country Sikh homeland called Khalistan by carving Punjab and some parts of neighbouring states of Haryana, Rajasthan and Himachal Pradesh out of Indian union.
Khalistan Liberation Force (KLF) is a militant group, and is part of the Khalistan movement to create a Sikh homeland called Khalistan via armed struggle. The KLF appears to have been a loose association of scattered Khalistani groups.
Dr. Jagjit Singh Chohan was the founder of the Khalistan movement that sought to create an independent Sikh state in the Punjab region of India and Pakistan.
Jathedar Sukhdev Singh Babbar was the co-leader of Babbar Khalsa International (BKI), a Sikh militant organization involved in the pursuit of creating a theocratic Sikh nation they call "Khalistan" and found responsible for the 1985 bombing of Air India Flight 182. BKI was founded by Talwinder Singh Parmar, himself, and Amarjit Kaur. He commanded BKI continuously for 14 years until he was killed in 1992.
This is a page that depicts Khalistani militants and paramilitary outfits.
The Sikh diaspora is the modern Sikh migration from the traditional area of the Punjab region of India. Sikhism is a religion, the Punjab region of India being the historic homeland of Sikhism. The Sikh diaspora is largely a subset of the Punjabi diaspora.
The International Sikh Youth Federation (ISYF) is a proscribed organisation that aims to establish an independent homeland for the Sikhs of India in Khalistan. It is banned as a terrorist organisation under Australian, European Union, Japanese, Indian, Canadian and American counter-terrorism legislation. The Government of India has declared it a terrorist organisation. While banned, the organization continues to receive financial support from many Sikh people based in Canada, the United States, and the United Kingdom.
Lakhbir Singh Rode is a Khalistani separatist and the nephew of Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale. He currently heads the International Sikh Youth Federation (ISYF), which has branches in over a dozen countries in western Europe and Canada. Rode is also affiliated with the Khalistan Zindabad Force. He is also known as Lakhbir Singh, Singh Lakhbir Rode, or Singh Lakhbir. He is suspected to be living in Lahore, Pakistan.
Dabinderjit Singh Sidhu was a Director at the National Audit Office who retired early in May 2022 after more than 33 years. He is an internationally known and well respected Sikh activist and spokesman for Sikh rights and interests. He was awarded an OBE in 2000 for his work on equal opportunities.
Sikhism in Greater Vancouver, is one of the main religions across the region, especially among the Indo-Canadian population. The Sikh community in Vancouver is the oldest, largest and most influential across Canada, having begun in the late 19th century. By 1995, Vancouver had one of the two largest Sikh populations in the world that are not in India. In 2003, the Sikhs became the largest group in Greater Vancouver who did not practice Christianity.
Paramjit Singh Pamma is an alleged Khalistani nationalist from the state of Punjab, India. He is a member of the Khalistan Tiger Force and is on the NIA Most Wanted list.
Jaspal Singh Atwal is an Indo-Canadian businessman convicted of attempted murder for his role in the 1986 attempt to assassinate Punjab minister Malkiat Singh Sidhu. A Khalistani sympathizer and member of the now-banned militant group International Sikh Youth Federation, he was also involved in the 1985 attack of Ujjal Dosanjh, a strong opposer of the Khalistani movement who would later become the 33rd Premier of British Columbia. In 2010, he was accused of being part of an automobile fraud case but was ruled out by the Supreme Court of Canada. In February 2018, Atwal gained national attention when he was invited by Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau to a reception during a visit to India and would eventually have his invitation revoked the next day. That same year, he was arrested for issuing death threats to a local radio in British Columbia.
Sikhs for Justice (SFJ) is a US-based secessionist group that supports the secession of Punjab from India as Khalistan. Founded and primarily headed by lawyer Gurpatwant Singh Pannun. It was banned in India in 2019 as an unlawful association. As of 2019 it campaigns for a Punjab independence referendum to carve out a separate Khalistan as a part of its separatist agenda. A report by a right-wing Canadian thinktank alleged that Pakistan had been funding Sikhs for Justice (SFJ). This report was criticized in a letter by 50 Sikh scholars, who asked the thinktank to retract their report. SFJ has sued the thinktank for defamation.
