“It’s Homeland or Death”: The Separatist Movement Roiling the Indian World
“The American “Sangh,” which translates loosely to ‘assembly,’ is what political researchers have termed the matrix of multiple Hindu American nonprofits with ideological ties to Hindu nationalist politicians and paramilitaries in India. And amid the global targeting of Sikhs in recent years, tensions have mounted between some Sikh and Hindu communities over the issue of Khalistan, particularly in California. In lockstep with the increasingly ersatz Indian mediascape, leaders from certain Hindu organizations, such as the Hindu American Foundation, have publicly alleged that the movement in Khalifornia is hardly distinguishable from Punjabi gang violence in Canada, openly admitting that there are no established connections but claiming “it’s certainly plausible to connect the dots.” The Hindu American Foundation has worked closely with Modi’s administration to coordinate his visits to the US and has argued for Indian interests in Washington. When asked if this speculative criminal insinuation between Khalistanis and organized crime was part of their institutional position on the movement, HAF declined to answer.”