UN report warns of Indian threats against BIG-linked human rights defender

Moninder Singh Bual, president of the Canadian Sikh Federation and a human rights defender who works closely with the Baku Initiative Group (BIG), has been the target of assassination plots and transnational repression, according to a report by United Nations Special Rapporteurs cited by BIG.

BIG said the UN report states that since 2022, Bual has received four official "duty to warn" notices from Canadian security authorities over threats linked to his advocacy for the Sikh people's right to self-determination on international platforms, Caliber.Az reports via local media.

According to the report, the fourth and most recent warning was delivered to Bual's home on Feb. 22, 2026. It said Canadian intelligence authorities assessed as highly credible an alleged assassination plot targeting not only Bual but also his wife and two young children.

The report describes the alleged assassination attempt as an example of what it characterises as a strategy by the Indian state to physically eliminate dissidents and human rights defenders cooperating with UN special mechanisms, regardless of their location. It also says the timing of the alleged plot, shortly before Bual's planned departure for Geneva to attend the 61st session of the UN Human Rights Council, was not coincidental.

According to BIG, five UN Special Rapporteurs and experts covering human rights, counter-terrorism, freedom of peaceful assembly and freedom of religion sent an official communication to the Canadian government in response to the case.

The UN experts described the threats against Bual and his family as part of what they characterised as unlawful transnational repression, contract killings and retaliatory actions carried out abroad by Indian authorities and intelligence services, BIG said.

The communication also refers to the 2023 killing of Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Canada after he had received a similar warning, and expresses concern over what it describes as Canada's failure to maintain sufficient vigilance against alleged state-sponsored terrorism carried out by New Delhi on the territory of sovereign states.

According to the documents cited by BIG, the Indian government is accused of suppressing the fundamental rights of ethnic and religious minorities within the country and of attempting to silence Sikh activists living in Western countries through unlawful espionage, blackmail and intimidation.

Following publication of the UN experts' communication, the issue received extensive coverage from international media, including The Guardian, CBC News, Global News and The Independent, according to BIG.

BIG also said its social media accounts and official website are regularly subjected to cyberattacks originating from India.

By Aghakazim Guliyev