Pannun Exploits Asylum Cases: What Is The Goldy Dhillon Link To Kapil Sharma Cafe Attack? Exclusive

Last Updated:October 16, 2025, 22:48 IST

Sikhs for Justice leader Gurpatwant Singh Pannun is exploiting youth-for-asylum cases, and alleged gangster Goldy Dhillon is his client in an asylum case

SFJ leader Gurpatwant Singh Pannun and alleged gangster Goldy Dhillon are closely working on the upcoming Khalistan Referendum on November 23 in Ottawa. (Image: AP/X)

Alleged gangsters Goldy Dhillon and Kulvir Sidhu (Nepali) have claimed responsibility for the third attack on comedian Kapil Sharma’s cafe in Canada’s Surrey.

Now Dhillon, who is affiliated with the Lawrence Bishnoi gang, is known to be a close aide of pro-Khalistan Sikhs for Justice (SFJ) leader Gurpatwant Singh Pannun.

But, how is this link significant in the cafe attack case?

Pannun is exploiting youth-for-asylum cases, and Goldy Dhillon is his client in an asylum case. The two are closely working on the upcoming Khalistan Referendum on November 23 in Ottawa.

According to intelligence sources, Pannun funds social media influencers and journalists to recycle SFJ narratives, using social media to create fake legitimacy loops for diaspora grievances.

News18 has already reported the attack on Kaps Cafe in Canada.

The sources said Pannun and his associates use asylum and legal-service channels to exploit diaspora event networks. They use these to shelter, move, and profit from young activists, creating a potential pipeline for criminal exploitation, they said.

They said the recent shootings at Kaps Cafe, claimed by the Lawrence Bishnoi gang and Goldy Dhillon, highlight how criminal groups operate within the same diaspora ecosystem.

The SFJ’s Ottawa referendum will create concentrated mobilisation points and increase operational risks, the sources said. Pannun also uses small NGOs and companies to process activists and derive payments, providing a mechanism to screen, move, and create legal cover for persons of interest, they said.

He engages those born after 1984 for migration from India, using them for protests against India in front of the Indian High Commission and to abuse the Indian government, they said. They are instructed to give television interviews against the Indian government and its atrocities to strengthen their asylum claims, they added.

Multiple intelligence reports have identified Goldy Dhillon and Kulvir Sidhu, as claiming responsibility for the recent Kaps Cafe shootings in Surrey. Dhillon is an active transnational gangster with prior allegations of recruiting foot soldiers. This demonstrates how criminals operate within the same society where SFJ campaigns are active.

ALSO READ | Immigration Racket, ISI Funding, Fake Referendums: News18 Decodes Pannun’s Pernicious Plan

WHAT IS THE MODUS OPERANDI?

The sources said Pannun uses fake persecution claims to secure asylum for loyal recruits, using them for propaganda and disruptive acts.

The SFJ and Pannun maintain an active social media presence, shaping narratives and attracting newly recruited Sikhs, the sources said. They provide a support base for individuals implicated in violence, offering legal support and, once freed, deploying them for higher tasks, including killings in both India and Canada, they added.

Manoj Gupta

Group Editor, Investigations & Security Affairs, Network18

Group Editor, Investigations & Security Affairs, Network18

News world Pannun Exploits Asylum Cases: What Is The Goldy Dhillon Link To Kapil Sharma Cafe Attack? Exclusive

Read More