Sikh referendum in Edmonton draws 23,000 votes as SFJ unveils anti-Modi campaign

More than 23,000 votes were reportedly cast on Sunday in Edmonton, Canada, in a referendum-style exercise organised by Sikhs for Justice (SFJ), which campaigns for an independent Sikh homeland in India’s Punjab. Organisers said voting was extended beyond the scheduled closing time to accommodate people still waiting in line, according to Dawn.

Held on Oct 18 at the Alberta Legislature Grounds, the exercise was non-binding and had no official standing, forming part of SFJ’s international campaign for Khalistan, Dawn and The Nation report.

SFJ general counsel Gurpatwant Singh Pannun announced a three-pronged strategy to challenge Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government: continue overseas referendums, support political and youth movements opposing the government inside India, and press foreign investors to withdraw from Indian markets.

Describing the initiative as “Fifth-Generation Warfare”, Pannun declared “toppling Modi’s regime” his immediate political objective, adding: “Our struggle continues.”

Pannun, a US-based lawyer and dual US-Canadian citizen, was designated an individual terrorist by India in 2020; India has banned SFJ under its anti-terrorism law. He was also the target of an alleged assassination plot in the US; in February 2026 Indian national Nikhil Gupta pleaded guilty in a US court to charges connected with a plot to murder a US citizen at the direction of an Indian government employee, per the US Justice Department.

SFJ timed the vote around Alberta’s own independence referendum push (this paper reported on Oct 20), and IANS reported before the event that Indian agencies were monitoring it amid concerns over militant recruitment in Punjab.

Sources: Dawn · The Nation · IANS