IB opposes PMO move to liftentry curbs on ‘blacklisted’ Sikhs

As per government records, names of 43 Sikhs are included in the list.

The Intelligence Bureau (IB) has opposed the PMO proposal relaxing visa restrictions on overseas Sikhs, whose names figure in a secret “blacklist”, maintained by the government, a senior government official said.

A delegation of British Sikhs met Prime Minister Narendra Modi in London in November this year and raised the demand for removing the names of Sikh individuals from the list, which bars them from travelling to India.

As per government records, there are 43 Sikh individuals, who are residents of U.K, Germany, Canada, whose names are included in this list. The IB has said there should be no blanket clearance of names included in the list and entry restrictions to India should be lifted only on a case by case basis.

IB has also suggested that the visiting Sikhs should be asked to “sign an oath of allegiance to the Constitution” before being allowed in the country.

Extremism revived

The revival of Sikh extremism has become a cause of concern for the intelligence agencies as well the government after a series of incidents of sacrilege of the

Granth Sahib, the holy book of the Sikhs, was reported in Punjab over the past few months. The incidents led to communal tension in many parts of the State. Though the State government blamed a “foreign-hand” for the violent incidents, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) in a reply to Parliament last week said they did not have any such information.

Sikh groups have submitted representations to Mr. Modi at various platforms; their efforts during his visit to the UK resulted in an assurance that the government would look into their demands. The PMO sent the proposal to the IB for its opinion.

“With elections due in Punjab, we expect a resurrection of separatist movement in the State. If the restrictions on blacklisted individuals are lifted en masse then it could have a disastrous impact on internal security. There is a reason why those names are there,” said a senior government official.

The blacklist is maintained by MHA and not available in the public domain.