Hardeep Singh Nijjar killed in Surrey

Who: Hardeep Singh Nijjar, 45, president of the Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdwara in Surrey, B.C., who supported a separate Sikh state and denied any involvement in violence; the gunmen, unidentified at first; Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau; and the Indian government, which denies any role.

What: On Sunday 18 June 2023, just before 8:30 pm, Nijjar was shot dead in his vehicle in the gurdwara parking lot on 120th Street, Surrey. Al Jazeera reports masked gunmen. RCMP Assistant Commissioner Brian Edwards called it "a brazen act of violence outside a place of worship". India had filed a case against him in 2018 accusing him of plotting an attack in Punjab, which he denied. Global News reports that he spoke of threats in a May interview, and that Moninder Singh said Nijjar and three others were warned in July 2022 of an imminent threat of assassination; the RCMP declined to confirm this.

On 18 September 2023 Trudeau told the House of Commons that security agencies were pursuing "credible allegations of a potential link" between agents of the government of India and the killing, which he called an unacceptable violation of Canadian sovereignty. Canada expelled Pavan Kumar Rai, whom Foreign Minister Mélanie Joly named as head of the Canadian branch of India's RAW. India called the allegations "absurd and motivated" and expelled a Canadian diplomat. The US, UK, Australia and New Zealand did not echo the allegation, Al Jazeera reported.

Later steps: in May 2024 four Indian men, Amandeep Singh and Karanpreet Singh (alleged shooters), Karan Brar (alleged driver) and Kamalpreet Singh, were arrested in Alberta and Ontario and charged with murder and conspiracy. Their case is pretrial under a publication ban, and in December 2025 Canada's Attorney General asked the Federal Court to bar disclosure of certain information as harmful to international relations and national security. Global News reported in November 2025, relaying Bloomberg, that British intelligence first tipped Canada in July 2023 and that intercepts point to senior Indian officials. On 7 July 2026 the FBI and RCMP announced charges against leaders of three India-based crime networks. The US indictment alleges that Lawrence Bishnoi, jailed in India, and Satinderjeet Singh, known as Goldy Brar, directed the killing. Indictments are allegations.

Where: Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdwara, 120th Street, Surrey, British Columbia.

Why it mattered: A Canadian prime minister told Parliament that Indian government agents were credibly linked to the killing of a Canadian citizen on Canadian soil. Canada cut off trade talks, and the two countries expelled each other's diplomats. India says it has seen no evidence of its role. As of the latest reports no court has ruled on who ordered the killing.