OTTAWA – Canadian police charged three Indian men on May 3 with the murder of Sikh separatist leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar in 2023, and said they were probing whether the men had ties to the Indian government.

Mr Nijjar, 45, was shot dead in June outside a Sikh temple in Surrey, a Vancouver suburb with a large Sikh population.

The news broke days after the White House expressed concern about the reported role of the Indian intelligence service in assassination plots in Canada and the US.

Mr Nijjar was a Canadian citizen campaigning for the creation of Khalistan, an independent Sikh homeland carved out of India.

The presence of Sikh separatist groups in Canada has long frustrated New Delhi. Mr Nijjar was labelled a “terrorist” by India.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced in September that the Canadian authorities were pursuing allegations linking Indian government agents to the murder of Mr Nijjar. New Delhi rejected Mr Trudeau’s claim as “absurd.”

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) named the three men as Karanpreet Singh, 28, Kamalpreet Singh, 22, and Karan Brar, 22.

“We’re investigating their ties, if any, to the Indian government,” RCMP Superintendent Mandeep Mooker told reporters.

Canada had been pressing India to cooperate in its investigation.

Canadian police said they worked with US law enforcement agencies, without giving additional details, and suggested more detentions might be coming.

“This investigation does not end here. We are aware that others may have played a role in this homicide, and we remain dedicated to finding and arresting each one of these individuals,” said RCMP Assistant Commissioner David Teboul.

“We welcome the arrests, but this does lead to a lot more questions,” said Mr Balpreet Singh, legal counsel and spokesman for the Canada-based World Sikh Organisation advocacy group.

“Those who have been arrested are part of a hit squad, but it’s clear that they were directed,” he said by phone. REUTERS