Canada wants to withhold ‘sensitive’ information in Sikh leader’s murder case
Canada’s justice department is fighting to keep “sensitive” national security information from appearing in the upcoming murder trial of four Indian men accused of shooting a BC Sikh leader in 2023.
In an application filed in the Federal Court, lawyers representing the Attorney General of Canada requested permission to withhold evidence from the prosecution of the accused killers of Hardeep Singh Nijjar.
Court documents released to Global News do not specify what information they want to keep secret, but they say releasing it “would be dangerous to international relations and national security.”
The case against those accused of killing the president of a Sikh temple is being watched closely because of allegations that the Indian government ordered the killing as part of a campaign to silence their political opponents abroad.
The claims, first made public in September 2023 by then-Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, fueled tensions between Canada and India. Ottawa later expelled Indian diplomats and diplomatic officials from the country.
Since taking office, Prime Minister Mark Carney has re-engaged with India and sought to expand trade ties. Canadian Sikhs have called it a betrayal, if India suspects that it is targeting them.
It is not unusual for federal attorneys to ask a judge to allow them to avoid disclosing national security information at trial. Usually, it happens when the information in question is provided by an outside agency.
“In Canada, the Attorney General has the power to apply to the Federal Court to, in effect, protect certain types of information from being publicly released and protected,” said University of Calgary law professor Michael Nesbitt.
“Such requests are unusual and unusual, and are governed by statute and court oversight, while the defense has the opportunity to challenge the request,” said Nesbitt, a national security law expert.
“We see this type of request more in the area of counter-terrorism and national security, but often also in relation to situations where there is a need to protect information related to undercover operatives, informants, or information obtained from Canadian partners where such cooperation has occurred.”
Canadian Justice officials filed their lawsuit on Dec. 24, 2025.
A spokesperson for the Department of Justice said the Attorney General of Canada is seeking an order under a section of the Canada Evidence Act that “confirms the prohibition of disclosure of certain information.”
“We cannot provide further details at this time.”
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The BC Prosecution Service, which is prosecuting the four suspects, declined to comment on the Federal Court case. The spokesperson said the case is in the pre-trial phase, which is subject to a publication ban.
Nijjar was shot dead in his truck on June 18, 2023, while leaving Surrey’s Guru Nanak Sikh Temple. RCMP believe India contacted mob boss Lawrence Bishnoi to plan the killing.
In May 2024, the two suspected shooters, Amandeep Singh and Karanpreet Singh, the fugitive Karan Brar and the fourth suspect, Kamalpreet Singh, were arrested in Alberta and Ontario.
They were charged with murder and conspiracy to commit murder. Neither Lawrence Bishnoi, who was imprisoned in India, nor his Canadian lieutenant at the time, Goldy Brar, were charged with the murder.
Lawyers representing Amandeep Singh, Karanpreet Singh and Karan Brar, declined to comment on the matter. Kamalpreet Singh’s lawyer did not respond to emails from Global News.
India has said it has not seen any evidence of its role in the plot.
Indian citizens Karan Brar, from left to right, Kamalpreet Singh and Karanpreet Singh, and Amandeep Singh (not shown) have been charged with the murder of BC Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO, RCMP
A Canadian citizen who emigrated from India, Nijjar was a leader of the Khalistan separatist movement seeking independence for India’s Sikh Punjab region. Although India called him a terrorist, he did not face charges in Canada.
At the time of his assassination, Nijjar was organizing a symbolic poll asking members of the Sikh diaspora whether they supported the independence of Khalistan. Some of the suspects in the Indian campaign were Khalistan activists.
The first tip implicating Indian officials in the assassination came from communications obtained by the United Kingdom and shared with Canada by British intelligence, sources told Global News.
Talks about targets in Canada were also picked up by the FBI during its investigation into a similar plot in which an Indian intelligence chief hired a thug to kill a pro-Khalistan activist in the US.
Such intelligence is often shared with allies on the understanding that it cannot be used in court, said national security law expert Leah West, an associate professor at the Norman Paterson School of International Affairs in Ottawa.
“It is normal, in cases where the police receive information from other agencies during an investigation, that the Attorney General wants that information to be protected from disclosure,” he said.
“The basis for seeking to withhold it is referred to as a national security right. The argument for that is that if disclosed, the information would expose methods and techniques, investigative interests, or service personnel and to do so would pose a threat to Canada’s national security.”
A judge must confirm the right, he said. In addition, the information in question cannot be used against the accused, and anything that could point to the innocence of the accused should be disclosed, he added.
State actors such as China, India and Iran have long sought to intimidate and silence members of Canadian diaspora communities, a practice known as international repression.
“International repression appears to be one of the most serious but least understood threats to security and democracy in Canada,” said a report released Tuesday by the Montreal Institute for Global Security.
“As foreign countries increasingly target people on Canadian soil, through intimidation, surveillance, digital abuse, forced family members abroad, and, in some cases, physical harm programs, Canada is facing a challenge that strikes at the core of its democratic values and institutions.”
Stewart.Bell@globalnews.ca
