An attempt has been made to burn alive a Canadian-Pakistani businessman who was involved in protests after the death of Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Canada. Rahat Rao was set on fire by an unknown person in Surrey city of British Columbia province of Canada. Rahat Rao has a Forex business in Surrey Central area of Canada.
The age of the person who set Rahat Rao on fire is said to be 24-25 years. Canadian Police has also released the photo of the accused. Seriously injured Rahat Rao is very active in Canada and was involved in many protests after the death of Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Nijjar.
According to sources, Rao is not an agent of Pakistan’s intelligence agency Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), as was being claimed in many media reports.
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Nijjar was shot dead
On June 18 last year, Nijjar was shot dead outside a gurudwara in Surrey. His name was included along with 40 other ‘designated terrorists’ in the list released by the Government of India. In September last year, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau had alleged the possible involvement of Indian government agents in the killing of a Khalistani terrorist, after which a major diplomatic dispute arose between India and Canada.
India strongly rejected Trudeau’s claims, calling them “absurd” and “motivated”. Nijjar’s murder is being investigated by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP).
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Who was Hardeep Singh Nijjar?
In 1997, Nijjar had gone to Canada with a fake passport. There his refugee claim was rejected, after which he married a local woman there. But this move also did not work for him and his immigration claim was also rejected. However, immediately after his death, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau addressed him in Parliament as a Canadian citizen.
According to security agencies, Nijjar was the head of the banned terrorist organization KTF and was actively recruiting and training people. He was also a part of the separatist organization Sikh of Justice. He had conducted Khalistan referendum on 10 September. In the last few years, India has expressed its concern several times about Nijjar’s activities. In 2018, former Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh had given a list of wanted persons to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau with Nijjar’s name included.
In 2022, Punjab Police had sought the extradition of Nijjar. He was wanted in cases of spreading terrorism in Punjab. He was wanted in various cases, including the 2017 Ludhiana blasts, in which six people lost their lives and 42 were injured. Earlier, Punjab Police had registered a case against Nijjar for his alleged role in the bomb blast near a temple in Patiala.