The violent attack on a Hindu temple in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) last Sunday has resulted to the arrest and charging of the main organizer of Canada’s so-called Khalistan referendum.
According to a statement released by Peel Regional Police (PRP) on Saturday, Inderjeet Gosal, 35, of Brampton, was detained and charged with assault with a weapon on Friday. According to the announcement, he was given a conditional release and will later appear before the Ontario Court of Justice in Brampton.
On November 8, Gosal was taken into custody after Khalistani radicals beat Hindu-Canadian devotees during a protest at the Hindu Sabha temple. People began using sticks and flags as weapons during the protest on The Gore Road, which turned violent over time. Numerous offences were caught on camera when police started looking into them, and they are still examining the film to find more culprits.
Gosal was given a conditional release and will next be seen in court. To continue investigating the events on November 3 and 4, the police have established a Strategic Investigative Team. They stated that arrests are made as people are identified and that these investigations take time.
Who is Inderjeet Gosal?
Gosal is regarded as the lieutenant of Gurpatwant Pannun, general lawyer for Sikhs for Justice (SFJ). Following Hardeep Singh Nijjar’s death in Surrey, British Columbia, on June 18 of last year, he took over as the primary Canadian organizer for the referendum.
After Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said in the House of Commons three months after Nijjar’s murder that there were “credible allegations” of a possible connection between Indian agents and the crime, ties between New Delhi and Ottawa began to deteriorate. India had called those accusations “motivated” and “absurd.”
According to Canadian authorities, Gosal was also one of 13 Canadians targeted by violent criminal activity directed at pro-Khalistan elements. In response to those Canadian accusations, India expelled six ambassadors and officials and withdrew six more.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Prime Minister Trudeau, and Pierre Poilievre, the leader of Canada’s opposition, were among those who denounced the November 3 attack on the Hindu Sabha Mandir in Brampton, which stunned the Indo-Canadian community.
When pro-Khalistan elements protested the temple, which at the time was housing a consular camp with Indian officials from the Consulate in Toronto present, SFJ had said that Gosal had been singled out.
A counter-protest at a gurdwara in Malton that evening and a rally against the violence at the temple on Monday, which the PRP had deemed “illegal” due to the presence of firearms, have been linked to several arrests made in connection with the incident. Additionally, a PRP sergeant was suspended for taking part in the pro-Khalistan demonstration.
Widespread condemnation
Many Canadian politicians have condemned the Khalistani extremists’ attack on the Hindu Sabha temple in Brampton, Canada, including Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, opposition leader Pierre Poilievre, Toronto MP Kevin Vuong, and MP Chandra Arya. “The leaders of our country have failed to protect Hindus,” said the MP from Toronto.
In Brampton, tensions have increased since the brutal altercation. The dispute began when demonstrators brandishing Khalistani flags disrupted a consular function that the Indian Consulate and temple administrators had jointly planned. Videos on social media show people fighting with poles and engaging in fistfights on the temple grounds.
In a post on X, Prime Minister Narendra Modi stated, “I strongly condemn the deliberate attack on a Hindu temple in Canada.” And the cowardly attempts to scare our ambassadors are equally disgusting. Violence of this kind will never make India less determined. The Canadian government is expected to maintain the rule of law and provide justice.
Additionally, ‘anti-India’ groups’ “violent disruption” outside a consular camp was denounced by the Indian High Commission in Canada. The non-profit Hindu Canadian Foundation, which supports the Hindu community, responded to the attack by posting a video of the temple’s assault and asserting that Khalistani terrorists targeted women and children. Additionally, the High Commission declared that any upcoming events will be planned “contingent on security arrangements” provided by local government.
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