New Delhi: YouTube has blocked access in India to a story by CBC’s The Fifth Estate on the alleged contract killing of a Canadian Sikh separatist leader, Hardeep Singh Nijjar, based on orders from the Union government under the Information Technology Act. The documentary, titled ‘Contract to Kill’, reportedly showed exclusive security video of Nijjar being killed on June 18, 2023.
CBC has said that it received an email from YouTube on Wednesday (March 13) saying it had received an order from India’s Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology to block access to the video. The platform confirmed that “the content has now been blocked from view” on the India YouTube country site.
X (formerly Twitter) has also told CBC that it has received a legal removal demand from the Indian government on the same story. “Indian law obligates X to withhold access to this content in India; however, the content remains available elsewhere,” X reportedly told CBC. “We disagree with this action and maintain that freedom of expression should extend to these posts. Following the Indian legal process, we are in current communication with the Indian authorities.”
According to the news organisation, the video it aired “included video that showed Nijjar, the president of the Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdwara, leaving the parking lot of his place of worship in Surrey on the evening of June 18, 2023, in his grey Dodge Ram pickup truck. As he approaches the exit, a white sedan pulls in front of him, blocking his truck. Two men then run up and shoot Nijjar before escaping in a silver Toyota Camry.”
Nijjar’s killed had led to a serious frost in relations between Canada and India, with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau accusing the Indian government of being involved in the assassination. India claimed that Canada was not backing up its allegations with evidence.
Months later, however, the US White House and FBI made similar allegations about a foiled plot in the US to assassinate a Khalistani separatist there, Gurpatwant Singh Pannun. As The Wire has reported, India was much less aggressive in its response to the American allegations, promising to enquire into the matter.