NEW DELHI: In a first-of-its-kind lawsuit, a Sikh British Columbia resident and long-serving Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) superintendent has sued the Govt of India in Ontario Superior court, alleging he was falsely vilified through a malicious state-linked propaganda.His suit, filed this Tuesday (December 2), claims India’s “disinformation campaign” turned him from a respected CBSA officer into a fugitive terrorist. It alleges Indian news outlets, starting last October, started broadcasting false claims that he was a “dreaded terrorist” on the Canadian govt payroll.For nearly two decades, Sandeep Singh Sidhu served in the CBSA and was promoted to the post of superintendent, a mid-senior operational role, for whom a regular day at work revolved around administering border legislation—supervising frontline border officers, checking admissibility of people and goods into the country, detaining people who may pose a threat, and intercepting illegal goods.Then, based on allegations by India’s National Investigation Agency (NIA) in the Supreme Court in October 2024, Sidhu was labelled a member of the banned International Sikh Youth Federation (ISYF), a fugitive terrorist, a Khalistani operator with Pakistan links, and the mastermind behind the 2020 assassination of Shaurya Chakra awardee Balwinder Singh Sandhu, a critic of Khalistani militancy.It was during Sandhu’s murder case hearing when the NIA, investigating agency on this case, told the Supreme Court of India that Sandhu was targeted as part of a plot to eliminate anti-Khalistan voices and orchestrated the killing of Sandhu as part of a larger effort to revive the separatist movement.Sidhu denies any involvement in the activities alleged by India. He says he had never been to Pakistan, never contacted terrorist groups, and had never met or communicated with anyone connected to Sandhu’s killing.When Sidhu woke up to find his life rewritten by strangers in another country, everything changed. His clean service record at CBSA, a scandal-free office presence were all left in shambles. What he did have was a common Sikh surname, a public-facing job, and the misfortune of existing at the intersection of diplomatic tensions between India and Canada. The lawsuit claims Sidhu hence became a casualty.His lawyer, Toronto-based Jeffery Kroeker, told TOI: “The disinformation did not remain limited to the internet. It travelled into Sidhu’s neighbourhood, workplace and family. His family was forced from their home. His daughter’s school feared the threats would spill onto their grounds.”CBSA conducted investigations, including polygraph tests by Canada’s intelligence services, but found no evidence to substantiate the terrorism allegations.He was initially removed from his frontline duties but later reinstated. For Sidhu’s family, the harm was already done. Their life had shrunk into a cycle of fear and relocation.During this period of nearly the past 18 months, Sidhu trusted that his employer and the Canada government would step up and ensure his safety. “Instead, the threats escalated while CBSA repeatedly insisted this was not related to his role even after police confirmed his life was at risk,” Kroeker told TOI. The breaking point came when internal CBSA assessments declared there was “no threat” to Sidhu–despite “clear evidence to the contrary”, according to Kroeker.Sidhu, born and raised in British Columbia, has maintained that he is not a practicing Sikh, but this sudden identity-related scrutiny triggered severe emotional distress in his life.Frank Portman, partner in this case with Kroeker, told TOI: “This (disinformation) campaign has destroyed Sidhu. It destroyed his confidence in the career he committed two decades to serving faithfully… Canada had a duty to intervene long before the threats reached this point.”Portman added that the threats grew stronger every time Canada chose silence over support. “When a govt refuses to defend its own citizens, falsehoods quickly fill the void. Those lies moved from the internet into workplace chatter and institutional decisions because no one in authority countered them. The result was a crisis created not only abroad, but right here.” He emphasised that while the allegations involve India, “this case isn’t about any foreign state but Canada’s obligation to protect its own”.Also accused in the suit is the CBSA.Portman explained, “Sidhu’s Sikh background clearly influenced how quickly he was suspected and how slowly he was supported. The response would likely have been different had his appearance or last name aligned more closely with those in power. But this case isn’t about any foreign state—it’s about Canada’s obligation to every Canadian. Identity does not excuse indifference from institutions tasked with protecting the public.”The claim has been filed with the Ontario Superior Court, and the defendants now have a set period to respond. “After that, the matter proceeds to discovery, where the parties are responsible for making full disclosure of everything relevant to the matter to one another. Timelines will depend in part on how the Crown chooses to engage. Sidhu is fully prepared for the process ahead because the issues at stake are too important to ignore,” said Portman.A successful outcome, he said, could set a precedent requiring govts to respond decisively when officials are endangered by “identity-based or politically motivated disinformation”. Kroeker says this legal action has emerged as what he described as “the only remaining path to accountability and systemic change”. The lawsuit seeks $9 million (Canadian Dollars) in total damages, but Kroeker said Sidhu’s life will never be the same again. “The threats took away his sense of safety. Accountability isn’t optional. It’s necessary to restore trust.”According to the lawsuit, Sidhu now lives with PTSD, depression, and the sense of putting his loved ones in danger. “Professionally and personally, he went from being a trusted asset to being abandoned in his time of greatest need,” Kroeker said.
About the Author
