| Khalistan Tiger Force | |
|---|---|
 Logo | |
| Founder | Jagtar Singh Tara |
| Dates of operation | 1990s – present |
| Motives | Creation of a Sikh state |
| Active regions | Major Surrey & Brampton, Canada |California,USA|Australia|New Zealand |
| Status | Active |
| Means of revenue | Sikh diaspora |
| Part of | Khalistan movement |
| Designated as a terrorist group by |  India |
Khalistan Tiger Force (KTF) is a militant outfit of theKhalistan movement. In February 2023, it was designated as a terrorist organization by theGovernment of India.[1]
In May 2023, India'sNational Investigation Agency (NIA) arrested two wanted persons at Delhi’sIndira Gandhi International Airport, who allegedly were close aides of KTF's Arshdeep Singh, an "individual designated terrorist" based in Canada.[2] In June 2023, NIA arrested Gagandeep Singh who allegedly is a close-aide of KTF operatives.[3] Gagandeep Singh was also arrested previously in July 2021.[4]
The Indian government alleged thatHardeep Singh Nijjar was the leader of the outfit.
Khalistan Tiger Force was formed by Jagtar Singh Tara, a formerBabbar Khalsa International, another military organisation.[5] KTF is allegedly backed by Pakistan’sInter-Services Intelligence.[6] Tara is currently serving a life sentence in India for his involvement in the assassination of former Punjab Chief MinisterBeant Singh in 1995. Tara had escaped from jail in 2004, but was rearrested inThailand in 2015 and brought to India.[7]
According to the Indian government, Hardeep Singh Nijjar was the leader of Khalistan Tiger Force, and he was actively involved in the training and financing of militants for the organization.[8] Nijjar allegedly visited Pakistan in 2013-14 to meet with Jagtar Singh Tara.[7] Nijjar was also friendly withDal Khalsa leader Gajinder Singh, one of the five hijackers of anIndian Airlines Flight 423 in 1981, who is allegedly in Pakistan.[7] Nijjar's name was also on the list of wanted people that former Punjab Chief Minister, Captain Amarinder Singh handed over to Prime Minister Trudeau during the latter’s visit to India in 2018.[9] Nijjar, 45, was shot dead outside a Sikh temple on 18 June 2023 in Surrey, a city inMetro Vancouver with a large Sikh population, three years after India had designated him as a terrorist.[10]
In November 2011, KTF claimed ownership of abandoned explosives recovered from a car outsideAmbala railway station, purported for an attempt to assassinate an Indian politician in retribution for his involvement in the1984 Sikh massacre.[11]
On 12 April 2023, fourIndian Army soldiers were killed inBathinda; KTF claimed responsibility, although the police denied their involvement.[12]
In February 2023, the Indian Government banned KTF on the grounds of it being a militant outfit that aims at reviving terrorism in Punjab and challenges the territorial integrity, unity, national security and sovereignty of India and promotes various acts of terrorism, including targeted killings in Punjab.[13]
