Patna (Bihar) [India], August 24 : Former Indian High Commissioner to Canada, Sanjay Verma on Monday said that a purported leaked audio in which gangster Goldy Brar allegedly claimed responsibility for the killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar needs to be independently verified, while asserting that the incident appeared to be the result of a gang war involving drug trafficking, weapons procurement and rivalries between criminal groups. He reiterated India's position as a responsible global player and how New Delhi has constantly maintained regular communication on ways to curtail criminal frauds.
Speaking to ANI, Verma said the purported conversation between Brar and UK-based gangster Paramjit Singh Pamma points towards multiple factors behind Nijjar's killing, including alleged gang rivalries and links with drug trafficking and weapons.
"I've always talked about the gang war. And this was all a result of a gang war. Drugs are one of the elements, but that is not the only element in the entire conversation, which is yet to be verified independently," he said.
"In the entire conversation between Pamma in the UK and Goldy, probably somewhere in North America, the entire conversation points out to also the rivalry between him and Arshad Dalla as well as Sukha and Nijjar giving support to both of them," he added.
The former High Commissioner underlined, "Drugs are of course a part of it, advanced weapons procurement and delivery is a part of it. Gang rivalry is a part of it. So, this is a concoction of everything brought together."
Verma stressed that the purported audio had not been independently verified and said the claims emerging from it should therefore be treated with caution.
On allegations of India's involvement in the killing, Verma rejected them as "absurd" and reiterated that it was not India's policy to interfere in the internal affairs of other countries.
"Right from day one, we have said that this is an absurd allegation. Secondly, we have said that it's not India's policy to go and interfere in other countries' internal affairs... India has never supported transnational crime and it will never do so."
Verma noted that several individuals allegedly linked to organised crime and such activities, including Nijjar, Pamma, Brar and Arsh Dalla, had been designated under India's Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA).
He said the existence of Interpol Red Corner Notices against some of the individuals also demonstrated cooperation between Indian agencies and international law-enforcement mechanisms.
"If you look at all these individuals, Nijjar was on the UAPA list of terrorists. Pamma is on the UAPA list of terrorists. Goldy Brar is on the UAPA list. Arsh Dalla is on the UAPA list. All these people have already been identified by the government of India for their unlawful activities. So there's nothing new in this."
He further said, "The Indian state does not get involved as the perpetrator of transnational crimes; it stops transnational crimes. It shares information with other friendly countries if it has information about any possible transnational crime, so that either it can be stopped or the perpetrator could be held accountable. If you look at all these individuals you mentioned, some of them have red corner notices issued by Interpol. These red corner notices must have some input from the Government of India. So the government of India is a responsible global player. Therefore, the question of India being a part of any such transnational crime is absolutely absurd. We should not equate Indian criminals with the government of India or the state of India."
On the purported leaked audio, Verma said Canadian investigative agencies, including the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) and Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS), were likely examining the recording.
"I'm sure this audio is also with the Canadian Investigating Agencies, including the RCMP and its Foreign Intelligence Arm, which is CSIS, and they must be analysing it," he said.
He noted that since the conversation was allegedly in Punjabi, Canadian agencies would likely require translation and analysis before drawing conclusions.
The former High Commissioner also reflected on the status of the bilateral partnership between India and Canada and said that the cooperation between the two countries on transnational crime has improved and that intelligence agencies from both sides are now exchanging information.
"If you look at the current government in Canada, they have reached out to the government of India, which was always willing to cooperate. Now we have better interactions, better exchange of information, better exchange of intelligence between the two intelligence communities of India and Canada."
Verma also criticised the approach of the previous Canadian leadership, saying it had made allegations against India without sufficient basis.
"I will not blame Canada as such, but the then leadership of Canada, which acted in a hasty manner and due to the haste that it demonstrated, it came out with absolutely absurd, baseless allegations against the state of India and the government," he said.
Relations between India and Canada deteriorated sharply after then Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau alleged in September 2023 that Canadian agencies were pursuing "credible allegations" of a potential link between Indian government agents and the killing of Nijjar in British Columbia. India rejected the allegations as baseless and politically motivated.
Nijjar, who was designated a terrorist by India, was shot dead outside a gurdwara in Surrey, British Columbia, in June 2023.
The remarks of the former High Commissioner come three years after NIA-designated terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar was killed in Canada; Gangster Goldy Brar has claimed that he and his gang had a hand in the killing.
The Audio files, which were reportedly part of the anti-gang Operation Hardball, were released on social media by Canada-based commentator and journalist Ruchi Wali. In the purported audio tape, Satinderjeet Singh alias Goldy Brar, who has links to the Lawrence Bishnoi gang, allegedly claims responsibility for the killing of Nijjar.
According to the purported audio tapes, Brar is heard claiming, "I am not a coward like Lawrence Bishnoi (Balkaran Brar). I own up to my role (of getting Nijjar killed). He (Bishnoi) did convince me to take this step (Killing of Nijjar)."
The authenticity of the purported audio recordings and the claims made in them have not been independently verified.