Sikh community in Surrey tracks crime crackdowns and a banned film
Surrey's Punjabi Sikh community is tracking several significant developments this week, from a major joint U.S.-Canada law enforcement operation against Indian transnational crime networks to a banned Punjabi film drawing audiences at local community screenings. These events span questions of justice, geopolitics, and cultural expression that have been building for years within the community.
🎬 Banned film on Sikh activist draws audiences to Surrey screenings
Satluj, a Punjabi-language film starring Diljit Dosanjh as Sikh human rights activist Jaswant Singh Khalra, has been blocked in India and pulled from a streaming service shortly after its release, but it is finding an audience at community screenings across Canada, including events planned in Surrey this weekend.
Khalra was an activist who investigated and raised concerns about extrajudicial killings and disappearances during Punjab's separatist insurgency in the 1980s and 1990s. India's film censorship board, which must approve all cinematic releases, blocked the film from release for approximately two to three years, according to Gurpreet Singh, an independent journalist and author based in Delta, B.C.
When Satluj was finally launched on a streaming platform in July 2026, it was removed within 48 hours on orders from the Indian government, which cited security concerns. The removal drew significant attention from diaspora communities who viewed it as an attempt to suppress a story about documented abuses.
The community screenings in Surrey and elsewhere in Canada reflect the strong connection that local Punjabi Sikh communities maintain with questions of accountability and historical memory tied to events in Punjab. Dosanjh, a widely followed Punjabi singer and actor, brings substantial popular attention to a story long known within Sikh activist circles but rarely given mainstream cinematic treatment. The film's reception in Canada underscores the diaspora's ongoing engagement with questions of historical justice that remain unresolved in India. [1]
Sikh community weighs RCMP finding that India had no role in Nijjar killing
Following major gang-related arrests, the RCMP announced on July 8, 2026 that its investigation found no connection between the Indian government and the 2023 killing of Sikh leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Surrey. The announcement prompted a measured but cautious response from community representatives.
Moninder Singh, spokesperson for the Sikh Federation of Canada, said community members were encouraged by the law enforcement progress. "We're on the right track law-enforcement wise," he said. "But politically, it feels like we're courting India at the risk of violating the human rights of Canadians."
Singh's remarks reflected a concern that Ottawa is backing away from earlier allegations of Indian government involvement, a position some in the Sikh community view as placing diplomatic considerations ahead of accountability for a killing on Canadian soil. The RCMP's latest statement left open the question of who ordered the killing, even as the gang-related arrests represented concrete law enforcement action on a case that had remained unresolved for three years.
The arrests referenced in the RCMP announcement are connected to the broader Operation Hard Ball crackdown on Indian transnational crime networks, which separately named the Bishnoi gang in connection with the Nijjar case. Community members indicated they will continue to monitor both the legal proceedings and the diplomatic dimensions of the situation as they develop in the coming months. [3]
Operation Hard Ball targets three Indian-linked transnational crime networks
Canadian and U.S. authorities laid out sweeping allegations of racketeering, extortion, and murder against three Indian-linked transnational crime organizations, resulting in 24 arrests across both countries. The joint effort, named Operation Hard Ball, brought together the FBI and the RCMP.
One of the three organizations is run by Lawrence Bishnoi from inside a jail cell in India. The Bishnoi gang is charged in connection with incidents that include the extortion crisis affecting communities in Ontario and British Columbia, as well as the 2023 assassination of Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Surrey, B.C.
Among the documented incidents cited in court filings is the case of Abjeet Singh Kingra, who filmed himself firing shots at Punjabi singer AP Dhillon's Victoria-area home in September 2024, an incident that drew attention across South Asian community and entertainment circles.
FBI Los Angeles assistant director Patrick Grandy described the operation as a strike "at the heart of three brutal transnational organizations that have terrorized families, exploited communities and stolen lives." RCMP Commissioner Mike Duheme also appeared at the announcement. Despite the scope of the indictment, reporting noted that the court documents raise ongoing questions about the full extent of Bishnoi's alleged operations within Canada and how much of the network remains active on Canadian soil. [5]
Sources: [1] CBC · [3] CP24 · [5] Radio-Canada