On April 27th, Azaad Siasat, a Pakistani YouTube channel, released an interview with Khalistani terrorist Gurpatwant Pannun, which garnered controversy and widespread criticism. In this interview, Pannun issued various unsubstantiated and inciting claims during the conversation, covering the Pahalgam terrorist attack, the activities of Indian agencies, and the Indian political scenario.
Even more, he called for Pakistan to support the Khalistan movement, fueling further tensions between India and Pakistan.
Baseless Allegations About Pahalgam Terrorist Attack
During the interview, Gurpatwant Pannun astonishingly alleged that the Pahalgam terrorist attack, which killed 27 innocent Hindus in Kashmir, was indeed staged by Indian agencies. He hinted that the attack was politically motivated, accusing it of being done to help the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the forthcoming Bihar Assembly elections. “Indian agencies who assassinated innocent Hindus,” Pannun alleged, labeling the attack an instrument of political opportunism.
He also intimated that such attacks, timed coincidentally with the arrival of US leaders, held Indian agencies accountable for deploying surrogates to blacken Pakistan’s reputation worldwide.
Gurpatwant Pannun sought to whitewash the state-sponsored Islamic terror role of Pakistan’s government and army by blaming India. He refuted the involvement of Pakistan in the attack on Pahalgam and instead accused the Indian intelligence agencies of India. The story of Pannun argued that India sought to discredit Pakistan internationally.
Preposterous Lies Regarding Sikh Troops and Commanding Officers Facilitating Pakistan
Gurpatwant Pannun continued further, strongly making very provocative assertions that Sikh officers and soldiers in the Indian Armed Forces are with Pakistan. “This is 2025 and asserted that Sikhs would stand with Pakistan like a brick wall,” declared Pannun, asserting that Sikhs of India’s Punjab province would never let Indian forces pass through their territory to fight Pakistan. His assertion was considered a direct call into question the allegiance of Sikh soldiers to the Indian state.
Besides, Pannun employed the matter of the Indus Waters Treaty and India’s declaration to terminate the treaty as an excuse to further heighten tensions. He proposed that India was seeking to cut off Pakistan’s water supply, which, in his view, might cause a significant conflict between the two countries.
Khalistan Movement and Pakistan’s Role in Supporting It
The most contentious aspect of the interview was Pannun’s very public appeal for Pakistan to officially endorse the Khalistan movement at the United Nations Security Council (UNSC). ” Pakistan’s official endorsement of the Khalistan movement would ensure that millions of Sikhs in India’s Punjab would stand with Pakistan,” he claimed. He also insisted that Pakistan bring the issue of Khalistan to international forums, quoting the Khalistan Referendum as evidence of global Sikh support for the movement.
Pannun asserted that his campaign to persuade Sikh soldiers within the Indian Armed Forces to defect from their allegiance to India was going well, despite the Indian government having filed sedition charges against him. He also mentioned the dark days of Operation Blue Star in 1984, the subsequent anti-Sikh massacres, and the insurgency years in Punjab and asserted these had made the Indian government the “true enemy” of Sikhs.
Gurpatwant Pannun Appreciate for Pakistan’s Move towards Sikhs
Pannun thanked Pakistan for making Sikh pilgrimages to Kartarpur Sahib possible and for denying Indian visa requests. Nevertheless, he maintained that such moves were not enough, as Pakistan needed to take strong action to support the Khalistan cause openly. Pannun asserted that millions of Sikhs across the globe were willing to support Pakistan’s cause if the nation stood by the Khalistan movement.
During his interview, Pannun discussed the Khalistan Referendum’s progress, claiming that even without government support, the movement had made strides due to the work of the Sikh diaspora. He noted that the voting for the referendum would soon be available in Punjab in India and emphasized that individuals of all faiths would be allowed to vote in the process.
He also emphasized the significance of the referendum voting, being held shortly in Washington D.C., an international center of politics, and said he and his supporters were campaigning inside the U.S. Congress and the White House with the “Punjab Vote for Independence” movement.
Resilience of Gurpatwant Pannun to Indian Interventions & Threats
Pannun further stated regarding the mounting harassment of Khalistani activists by the Indian government. He referred to the killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a leading Khalistani terrorist, as one instance of India’s increased attempts to stamp out the movement. Pannun also asserted that India had attacked Khalistani terrorist and friend of SFJ Paramjit Singh Pamma, who was based in the UK.
He went so far as to assert that there was a price on his head of $500,000, which had been announced by a BJP Member of Parliament. Despite these dangers, Pannun stood firm, inviting Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) to a public battle against Sikhs.
Pannun also complained about the lack of action by Kashmiris abroad, condemning them for failing to organize protests against India. He also complimented the Islamic terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir, calling them “freedom fighters” and urging more international support for the Kashmir freedom movement.
