Media across the globe are active and competing in exposing and getting to the bottom of India’s transnational repression targeting Sikh activists campaigning for a Sikh homeland as highlighted by the CBC documentary. There is increasing speculation that the arrest of two Indian operatives in Vancouver, Canada is imminent.

The stakes for India and other nations are very high with what is emerging from the law enforcement agencies in Canada, US and UK.  This in part explains the delay in making the arrests in Canada, the relative silence in the UK and the US holding back on disclosing the identity of the person who has directed the assassination of Sikh activists from Delhi.

There is no doubt trust has seriously broken down and these countries, led by the US and others in the West are coming to the conclusion those running India present a high risk in their geopolitical plans with respect to China and Russia.

The identity of CC1, the co-accused with Nikhil Gupta in the US who also directed from Delhi the killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Canada is the missing piece in the jigsaw. The name that keeps coming up from multiple sources is Samant Kumar Goel the Research and Analysis Wing (R&AW) chief who ironically retired on 30 June 2023 the same day Nikhil Gupta was arrested by the Czech authorities.

He has subsequently been given Z-category security after the US and Canada raised concerns.

Samant Goel, has a chequered past having upset a number of intelligence services for his recruitment for India of controversial Sikh agents in the UK, Germany and elsewhere to undermine and target Sikh activists campaigning for a Sikh homeland.  The question on everyone’s lips is who is CC1? Is it Samant Goel or was CC1 reporting to him? What is clear is Goel was a very close confidante of Modi’s National Security Adviser Ajit Doval.

A spokesperson for the Sikh Federation (UK) responding to the increasing speculation said: “We believe the US has sufficient evidence to show the Indian PM, Narendra Modi on the advice of his National Security Adviser, Ajit Doval personally sanctioned the Research and Analysis Wing (R&AW) chief, Samant Goel to carry out the assassination of Sikh activists in the West campaigning for a Sikh homeland.

The US, the other Five Eyes nations and allies in Europe know they have a massive dilemma with those directing the assassinations from Delhi. The cat is out of the bag and all paths lead to the Indian PM who is almost certain to be re-elected the Indian PM in the May elections without any effective opposition.”