PM Narendra Modi may ask British PM Theresa May to stop rising Sikh radicalism in UK

India is likely to seek strong action over reported growth in Sikh extremism in the United Kingdom, just as in Canada and Australia, when Prime Minister Narendra Modi meets his British counterpart Theresa May in London on April 18-19.

The issue of revival of Sikh extremism will figure high on the agenda of Modi-May dialogue, people aware of the matter told ET.

They said that the Indian security establishment believes that the rising volume of Sikh extremist voices in the UK, Canada, Australia and even Italy may be a sign of revival of Sikh terrorist groups backed by Pakistan, adding that India is of the view that the UK is not doing enough to contain Sikh radicalism.


The issue may emerge as a major irritant in Indo-British ties as members of the Sikh community in UK are getting increasingly drawn into the extremist fold, said one of the persons, who did not wish to be identified.

Meanwhile, there are reports of major protests being planned by Sikh extremists and radicals in London during Modi’s visit.

Coinciding with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s trip to India in February, an umbrella body of Sikh groups in Britain had announced that 225 of the 270 Sikh gurdwaras in the UK were barring entry of Indian officials on political grounds. Earlier, in Australia, the Indian High Commissioner was not allowed entry into a gurdwara.

Sikh lobby groups active in the UK are influencing the decision-makers, the person cited earlier said.

In September last year, sections of the community had launched a major campaign urging the UK government to stop identifying them as ‘Indians’ in the UK Census and to create a separate ‘Sikh’ ethnic category for them. The campaign had snowballed into a major issue, securing the backing of more than 140 British MPs.

The Sikh community in the UK numbers around 430,000 and some Sikh groups have allegedly opposed the return of Kohinoor diamond to India by the UK. There are reports that younger Sikhs have been increasingly taking to extremism.

A British tribunal could rule soon on a plea on declassifying files which contain details of the UK government’s role in Operation Blue Star carried out by the Indian Army in June 1984 to drive out militants from the Golden Temple in Amritsar. The UK government has so far opposed such pleas to safeguard its relationship with India.