Man charged in temple protest a coordinator for pro-Sikh separatist group in Brampton

The latest person charged following violent demonstrations in Brampton is a prominent activist and coordinator for a Sikh separatist group whose house in the city was previously targeted in a shooting.

So far Peel Regional Police have arrested four people after protests turned violent in Brampton last week, with Hindu and Sikh residents clashing over decades of bad blood and the Khalistan movement, which looks for the state of Punjab to break away from India and become a Sikh- run state.

But the latest to be charged in the fallout from the protests had his Brampton home shot up earlier this year and is a coordinator with the group Sikhs For Justice – a group that the pro-Hindu Indian government considers a terrorist organization.

Peel Regional Police say Inderjeet Gosal, 35, of Brampton, was arrested and charged with assault with a weapon on Nov. 8 following the temple demonstrations and was released on conditions with an upcoming court date in Brampton.

He is the fourth person to be charged in connection to the incidents and follows a public incitement of hatred charge laid against a 57-year-old Toronto man last week.

The assault charge comes from the first protests on Nov. 3 where videos showed Sikh demonstrators clashing with Hindus outside a Brampton temple.

Sikhs For Justice said the rally was against the presence of Indian Consulate officials who were visiting to provide administrative services, like helping seniors access pensions.

Protests then moved to the Westwood Mall area in Mississauga, police said in a post early Monday morning. The same group of protestors then moved to the Airport and Derry roads area of Mississauga.

Then on Monday, a huge crowd gathered for a demonstration at the Hindu Sabha Mandir on The Gore Road in Brampton. Hundreds if not thousands took to the streets and Peel police ruled the gathering unlawful and called in its public order division after weapons were seen in the crowd.

A coordinator for SFJ, Gosal’s home was hit by gunfire in February. SFJ said a bullet hole was discovered at the home and Peel police confirmed officers were called to the residence. A post on social media showed a police cruiser at the scene along with the bullet hole in a window.

Gosal has been an organizer with the Khalistan referendum movement – a nonbinding vote around the world calling for creation of a Sikh state called Khalistan. He took over spearheading the referendum after the murder of Canadian-Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar, who helped organize a referendum vote in Brampton before he was shot and killed outside a temple in B.C. in 2023.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has said that the Indian government ordered Nijjar’s murder, a claim which led to strained diplomatic relations between the two countries and one that India denies.

Gosal also has ties to SFJ leader Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, who police in the U.S. say was the target of a murder-for-hire plot by an Indian national.

Posts on social media by SFJ indicate the group is planning for more demonstrations in both Mississauga and Brampton this weekend during another visit from the Indian consulate. INsauga.com has reached out to Peel Regional Police to see whether the force has any plans to attend but no response was immediately received.