A major trade mission from British Columbia to India, led by Premier David Eby and Jobs Minister Ravi Kahlon, is generating both significant economic optimism and sharp political opposition as it prepares to depart. The high-profile trip, seen by business leaders as a long-overdue opportunity, is simultaneously drawing planned protests from Sikh activist groups demanding accountability for the 2023 killing of a Surrey temple president.
Business Leaders See Major Economic Potential
Vivek Savkur, a prominent South Asian business leader and founder of the B.C.-India Business Network, has hailed the mission as a crucial step for expanding the provincial economy. Savkur, who also manages Anand Commercial Services in Mumbai and Savkur International Agencies in Vancouver, emphasized the untapped potential in sectors like critical minerals.
"India is a big importer. Sixty per cent of the critical minerals purchased by the U.S.A. was from Canada, but from India, it’s only two per cent," Savkur noted. He argued that forging stronger trade ties, potentially leading to a free-trade agreement, would be mutually beneficial for both Canada and India.
Savkur revealed he had only been informally consulted about the trip, speaking briefly with Minister Kahlon on the morning of Wednesday, January 7, 2026.
Protests Planned Over Unresolved Assassination Case
While the mission promises economic gains, it is shadowed by the unresolved murder of Hardeep Singh Nijjar. Nijjar, the president of the Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdwara in Surrey and a supporter of the Khalistani movement for an independent Sikh state, was gunned down outside the temple on June 18, 2023.
Later that year, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau made explosive allegations in Parliament, stating there were "credible allegations" linking agents of the Indian government to the shooting. This led to a severe diplomatic rift, though relations have recently begun to thaw with the reinstatement of high commissioners in August 2025 and subsequent high-level meetings.
In response to the trade mission, New York-based lawyer and activist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, a friend of Nijjar, has helped organize a protest rally. The demonstration is scheduled for Thursday on the lawn of the B.C. legislature in Victoria and is expected to draw between 50 and 100 Sikh activists.
A Clash of Sovereignty and Commerce
Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, who is designated a terrorist by the Indian government and has himself been an alleged target of assassination plots, framed the trade mission as a dangerous precedent. He argues it signals that India can assassinate a Canadian citizen on Canadian soil without facing lasting consequences.
"If they are going ahead with trade agreements with an Indian regime which openly defies their sovereignty, that not only means trade is an issue, basically, it signals condoning the act of assassination," Pannun stated.
He warned of political repercussions for B.C.'s NDP government, suggesting that pursuing trade "without accountability" could influence the coming provincial election. The core demand of the protest is to push the government to address the Nijjar case seriously, arguing that the mission otherwise "put Canada’s sovereignty for sale."
As Premier Eby and Minister Kahlon embark on their long journey, they carry the dual burden of unlocking substantial economic opportunity for B.C. while navigating the profound diplomatic and community tensions that persist from one of Canada's most sensitive foreign policy crises.
