Ottawa (Kashmir English): A series of violent killings targeting Indian-origin businessmen in Canada has triggered urgent calls for the federal government to designate India’s Lawrence Bishnoi gang as a terrorist organisation amid claims the group operates at the behest of Indian intelligence.
On May 14, 2025, 51-year-old Harjit Singh Dhadda was gunned down outside his office in Mississauga, Ontario. Hours later, a Facebook post claimed the murder on behalf of the Lawrence Bishnoi gang, an Indian-origin syndicate accused of orchestrating a rising wave of violence across Canada. It operates with the backing from Indian intelligence agencies.
Dhadda’s killing was followed by two more fatal shootings of Indian-origin businessmen — MP Dhanoa in Brampton and Satwinder Sharma in Surrey — all with alleged links to the Bishnoi network.
Canadian Police have made arrests in some cases, but the victims’ families and community members believe that the masterminds remain untouched.
“Designate Bishnoi gang as terrorist entity”
In response, political leaders from across the country — including Alberta Premier Danielle Smith, and British Columbia Premier David Eby — and several other lawmakers are urging the Canadian federal government to formally designate the Bishnoi gang a terrorist group.
“The terrorist designation enables police to use the necessary tools,” Eby said.
In addition, designating the gang would empower law enforcement to seize assets, criminalize support for the group, and strengthen international cooperation under Interpol and the Five Eyes alliance.
Alberta’s Public Safety Minister Mike Ellis cited “credible intelligence” linking the Bishnoi gang to extortion and targeted violence against the South Asian community in Canada.
Canadian officials believe that the Bishnoi network is not just an organised crime syndicate but may be working on behalf of Indian intelligence services to silence critics of Prime Minister Narendra Modi abroad.
This claim came to the forefront after the assassination of Sikh separatist leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar in 2023, for which Canada blamed India directly.
At the time, then PM Justin Trudeau accused Indian diplomats of collaborating with criminal gangs like Bishnoi’s to track and harm political opponents.
For many in the Indian-origin community in Canada, especially in cities like Brampton and Surrey, fear has become a new normal.
Gurleen Dhadda, daughter of the slain businessman Harjit Singh, recalls the day he received a threatening extortion call demanding C$500,000, warning of violent consequences. Despite alerting police, her father was shot dead months later.
“Police arrested three young men, but I want to know who ordered my father’s killing,” she said.
Lawrence Bishnoi, 32, is currently in jail in India but is believed to control hundreds of sharpshooters across borders via encrypted communications.
His gang gained infamy after the assassination of Punjabi singer Sidhu Moosewala in 2022, allegedly ordered by Bishnoi’s associate Goldy Brar from Canada.
As the Canadian government weighs its next move, many South Asian Canadians are seeking swift action on part of the Canadian authorities before another name is added to the victims’ list.
