Canadian Court Affirms Legality of No-Fly List Targeting Sikh Separatists

June 21, Toronto:
Two individuals, who were allegedly associated with Khalistan, had their appeals against the removal of their names from a no-fly list that had been imposed in 2018 rejected by Canada's Federal Court of Appeal. After being denied boarding aircraft in Vancouver in 2018, Bhagat Singh Brar and Parvkar Singh Dulai, also known as Parry Dullai, sought to have their names removed from Canada's no-fly list, according to the Globe and Mail. Reasonable suspicions existed that the two men intended to commit terrorist offences via air travel, according to the court, which was based on secret security intelligence.

According to the Canadian news outlet, the Supreme Court's judgement this week upheld the validity of the Secure Air Travel Act, confirming an earlier verdict by a lower court. According to this law, the minister of public safety can ban someone from taking to the skies if there are "reasonable grounds to suspect they will threaten transport security or travel by air to commit a terrorism offence." The placing of Brar and Dulai on the no-fly list was seen by them as an infringement of their Charter rights.

Nonetheless, the court upheld the statute's justification and ruled that the secret parts of the court proceedings were fair in terms of procedure. In his opinion for the three-judge panel, Judge David Stratas stressed the need to balance personal freedoms with security measures. He emphasised that the risks to the government from terrorism and insufficient security are "sky-high," thus allowing Parliament some room to manoeuvre.

Canada recently paid tribute to Hardeep Singh Nijjar in parliament, a measure that further highlighted the country's persistent worries about terrorism emanating from Khalistan. This new development follows that event. The people behind "Channel Punjabi" in Surrey and "Global TV" in Chandigarh are Parry Dullai and Jagmeet Singh, two close associates of the NDP leader.

Lakhbir Singh Brar, whose given name is Lakhbir Singh Rode, is supposedly Bhagat Singh Brar's father. The International Sikh Youth Federation (ISYF) was headed by Rode, a well-known Khalistani separatist who had ties to the Khalistan Zindabad Force. Brar is associated with the ISYF-R (Canada Chapter), the Jot Prakash Gurdwara Committee, and the Ontario Gurudwara Committee, where he also serves as General Secretary. The verdict highlights the persistent danger that terrorism from Khalistan poses to international security.