The trial against four Indian nationals accused of killing Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Surrey appeared in court Wednesday.
A mostly procedural morning, proceedings were soon over with Crown waiting to review thousands more submissions, on top of the 10,000 it already had received.
Nijjar, a high-profile pro-Khalistan activist, was shot and killed in broad daylight outside the Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdwara on June 18, 2023.
Karanpreet Singh, Kamalpreet Singh, and Karan Brar were arrested in Edmonton in May and are all facing charges of first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder. Amandeep Singh was arrested and charged with the same offences just a few days later while he was already in the custody of Peel Regional Police in Ontario for unrelated firearms charges.
Nijjar’s many supporters have been following the case and were stationed in front of the Surrey court on Wednesday, waving Khalistan flags. The case has frayed Canada-India relations after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said credible intelligence linked Nijjar’s death to Indian government involvement.
Nijjar’s killing prompted protests outside Indian consulates and accusations of foreign involvement in the murder. Nijjar was a key organizer of unofficial referendums for an independent Sikh state in India and was regarded by India’s government as a terrorist.
The case was adjourned for a fourth time Wednesday, to Oct. 1.
-With files from The Canadian Press