Khalistani activists have made a sizeable donation to the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC). This donation was not made directly. Instead, it was made via another organisation called Sikhs for Justice (SFJ).
A spokesperson from Geneva for the UNHRC confirmed the identity of the donor and the details of the donation. Speaking to the press, he said: “We confirm we received a contribution of $ 10,000 on 1 March from an individual representing the Sikhs for Justice (SFJ) group via our online donation function. In general, we do not decline online contributions, unless they are from groups or individuals listed on UN sanctions lists or the organisation/individual is engaged in activities manifestly contrary to the UN Charter or its principles.”
SFJ has alleged links with Pakistan’s premier spy agency, Inter-Services Intelligence.
The SFJ is banned in India on July 10, 2019 under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act and its founder Gurpatwant Singh Pannun has been declared as an “individual terrorist” for promoting secessionism and encouraging Punjabi Sikh youth to take up arms. In 2019, the central government via an order of Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology on the recommendation of the Ministry of Home Affairs banned 40 websites belonging to the group for attracting people to its cause.
This donation by SFJ to the UNHRC carried a letter alongside it. This letter is a supposed plea to the UNHRC, urging them to ‘look into’ what had happened on the day of the Republic Day riots in Delhi in India. It also beseeched the UNHRC to form a special investigation committee in order to probe into this issue.
The organisation has also launched a secure portal to collect data on anyone who has “suffered mistreatment at the hands of Indian officials for supporting the farmers’ protest”. The portal claims this data is being sent directly to the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights in Geneva.