Ottawa: Canada’s intelligence agency has identified Khalistani extremists as a “national security threat,” stating that the group uses Canadian institutions to promote its violent extremist agenda and raise funds, according to its latest report.
In its 2025 Public Report, the Canadian Security Intelligence Service said the involvement of Canada-based Khalistani extremist (CBKE) elements in violent activities continues to pose a threat to Canada and its interests.
“Some CBKEs are well connected to Canadian citizens who leverage Canadian institutions to promote their violent extremist agenda and collect funds from unsuspecting community members that are then diverted toward violent activities,” the report, published on the Canadian government website on Friday, said.
Khalistani extremist groups advocate for a separate sovereign state in India and are designated as terrorist organisations by New Delhi due to their involvement in separatist activities.
The report was released a year after the 40th anniversary of the bombing of Air India Flight 182, in which suspects linked to CBKE groups were involved. The attack remains the deadliest terrorist incident in Canada’s history, killing 329 people, most of them Canadians.
“It remains to this day the deadliest terrorist attack in Canadian history, with 329 people killed, most of them Canadians,” the report noted.
However, it clarified that non-violent advocacy for Khalistan is not considered extremism in Canada, and that some Canadians engage in peaceful campaigning supporting the separatist cause.
“Only a small group of individuals who use Canada as a base to promote, fundraise, or plan violence primarily in India are considered Khalistani extremists,” it added.
India-Canada relations deteriorated sharply in 2023 after then Prime Minister Justin Trudeau alleged a potential Indian link to the killing of Sikh separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Canada, a charge India rejected.
Under Prime Minister Mark Carney, who assumed office last year, both countries have since worked to rebuild strained bilateral ties.
With PTI inputs