The Government of Canada has officially designated India’s notorious Bishnoi gang as a “terrorist entity,” citing its alleged involvement in violent crimes and international security threats.
The decision, announced by Public Safety Minister Gary Anandasangaree on Monday, grants Ottawa “more powerful and effective tools” to combat the syndicate, which has been linked to assassinations, extortion, and intimidation both in India and abroad.
Canadian authorities have accused the Bishnoi network of possible involvement in the 2023 murder of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a prominent Sikh activist and Canadian citizen, gunned down outside Vancouver.
Nijjar, a vocal advocate for an independent Sikh state, was killed in an incident that triggered a major diplomatic rift between Ottawa and New Delhi.
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) previously alleged that members of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government may have collaborated with the Bishnoi gang to target Sikh activists on Canadian soil—an accusation strongly denied by India, which led to the expulsion of senior diplomats from both nations.
In its statement, Anandasangaree’s office described the Bishnoi gang as “a transnational criminal organization operating primarily out of India, with a footprint in Canada, generating terror through extortion and intimidation.”
The designation comes as Prime Minister Mark Carney, who assumed office in March, works to reset strained relations with India while advancing his push to expand Canada’s trade footprint in Asia.
Carney has framed stronger ties with India as critical to mitigating the fallout of Canada’s ongoing trade war with the United States.
During the G7 summit in Canada this June, Carney met privately with Prime Minister Modi, where both leaders underscored the importance of deepening commercial and diplomatic engagement despite the turbulence of recent years.
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