Pakistani Imam Deported from Italy as Sikh Activists in the Brescia Region Report Safety Fears

Two stories this week illuminate significant pressures facing South Asian communities in and around Brescia, in northern Italy's Lombardy region. Italian authorities deported a Pakistani imam residing in the country after he publicly endorsed the marriage of nine-year-old girls on religious grounds, drawing public outcry and prompting local community leaders to distance themselves from his statements. Separately, Sikh activists within Italy's diaspora communities — concentrated in Lombardy and Veneto, the regions nearest to Brescia — describe an atmosphere of fear and uncertainty following the assassination of Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Canada and the broader tensions that killing has exposed between Sikh advocacy groups and the Indian government.

Italy Deports Pakistani Imam After Public Endorsement of Child Marriage

Italian authorities deported a Pakistani imam residing in Italy after he publicly stated his support for the marriage of nine-year-old girls, offering religious grounds for his position. The deportation followed significant public outcry and legal proceedings triggered by the imam's remarks, which were widely reported in Italian media and drew condemnation from civil society, women's rights organizations, and political figures across the political spectrum.

Brescia, located in the Lombardy region of northern Italy, has a substantial Pakistani and broader South Asian immigrant community that has built roots in the area over several decades. In the aftermath of the deportation, community and religious leaders in and around Brescia moved quickly to publicly distance themselves from the deported imam's views, affirming their commitment to Italian law, to the rights of women and children, and to the norms of the society in which they have built their lives.

The case has nonetheless placed the wider South Asian Muslim community under heightened scrutiny, inviting generalizations that community representatives have worked to counter. Leaders have emphasized that the views expressed by the imam represent a fringe position rejected by the vast majority of Pakistani and South Asian Muslims living in Italy.

The episode has renewed conversations about the integration of immigrant religious communities into Italian civic life, the limits of religious expression under Italian law, and the mechanisms through which authorities respond to speech that directly conflicts with the country's legal protections for women and minors. [1]

Sikh Activists in Italy's Diaspora Communities Report Surveillance and Threats Amid Global Tensions

Sikh activists across Europe, including within Italy's Sikh diaspora communities concentrated in Lombardy and Veneto — the regions closest to Brescia — describe an atmosphere of fear and uncertainty following the assassination of Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Canada in 2023 and the broader tensions that killing has brought to the surface. A Guardian investigation found that Sikh advocates who speak publicly in support of Khalistan or who criticize the Indian government report being subjected to surveillance, harassment, and direct threats.

Italy's Sikh community is one of the most established in Europe, centered in the agricultural regions of northern Italy where Sikhs have worked for decades in dairy farming and related industries. Many community members have roots in the Punjab region and a portion maintain connections to Khalistan advocacy movements. Those who are politically active say they feel abandoned by Western security services that have been slow to acknowledge the transnational nature of the dangers they face.

The Nijjar assassination and subsequent revelations about alleged Indian government involvement in activities conducted on foreign soil have deepened anxiety within advocacy communities. For Sikh activists in Italy and across Europe, the central fear is that their political speech — protected under European law — is being monitored and punished outside formal legal channels, by actors operating across international borders.

Community organizations have called on Italian and European authorities to take these safety concerns seriously and to extend meaningful protection to individuals facing credible threats related to their political advocacy. [2]

Sources: [1] Middle East Forum · [2] The Guardian