MAKE YOUR VOICE HEARD

I am writing to you as a Sikh constituent and community member to express grave concern regarding the UK Government's recent decision to impose sanctions on Gurpreet Singh Rehal, a well-known and widely respected Sikh activist, researcher, and founder of the UK-registered organisation Saving Punjab.

These sanctions represent an unprecedented use of executive power under counter-terrorism that deliberately circumvents due process, evidentiary scrutiny, and the legal thresholds required for criminal conviction. Gurpreet Singh has not been charged with any offence. He was previously arrested alongside three other individuals, investigated, and all were released with no further action following an extensive police inquiry. Despite this, the Government has now imposed measures that in effect criminalise him without trial, placing him and his family under conditions of severe civil, financial, and social punishment.

The real-world consequences of this designation are extreme and immediate. All banking access was frozen, including personal accounts of family members who weren't named on the sanctions; employment and directorships have been terminated; essential utilities, communications, transport, and insurance services have been cancelled; and his wife's employment has been placed under scrutiny solely by association. His children have been directly impacted in school, and the family has faced threats, vandalism, and serious safeguarding risks after personal details were made public through official channels. These are not abstract or speculative harms, they are ongoing, documented impacts that would ordinarily follow a criminal conviction, not an untested executive designation.

The allegations themselves, that Gurpreet Singh funded terrorism, engaged in recruitment, or facilitated the purchase of weapons, have not been tested in any court, nor supported by any publicly examinable evidence. This is particularly troubling given the well-documented pattern whereby broad "counter-terrorism" frameworks are used to suppress political dissent and minority activism, especially where foreign states exert pressure through diplomatic or trade channels. Comparable critiques have been extensively analysed in the context of extradition law, where executive discretion and deference to foreign intelligence have repeatedly led to serious human rights violations affecting Sikh activists.

It is also essential to understand why these sanctions are causing such deep anger and distress within the Sikh community globally. The Government's framing relies on the label of "terrorism" in a manner that directly conflicts with Sikh historical, religious, and political realities. Figures characterised by the Indian state as "terrorists" are honoured openly in Gurdwaras across the UK and worldwide as Sikh shaheeds (martyrs). Their images are displayed at the Sri Akal Takht Sahib, within the Shaheedi Gallery at Sri Darbar Sahib in Amritsar. By adopting the language and categorisations of the Indian state, the UK Government is not taking a neutral security position, it is implicitly endorsing one highly contested political narrative over the lived beliefs, history, and values of the Sikh community.

This context matters. Over 200 Sikh organisations across multiple continents have publicly condemned these sanctions as arbitrary, politically motivated, and emblematic of transnational repression, particularly in light of recent UK–India trade negotiations and explicit Indian Government statements welcoming the action taken against Gurpreet Singh. Many Sikhs view this as a chilling signal: that advocacy for Sikh self-determination, human rights in Punjab, or Khalistan, positions that are lawful in the UK, may now expose individuals and institutions to punitive state action without judicial oversight.

For these reasons, I am writing to inform you directly and to ask for your engagement. A Panthic (Sikh Community led engagement event) Conference took place on Saturday 24 January at Sri Guru Singh Sabha Gurdwara, Derby. This gathering addressed the legal, political, and community implications of the sanctions and considered collective next steps. Over 600 community members from across the UK, Europe and North America attended.

This issue has generated profound dissatisfaction, anxiety, and anger within the Sikh community. Silence from Sikh representatives risks being interpreted as acquiescence to a policy that many view as discriminatory, politically driven, and fundamentally at odds with both British legal principles and Sikh lived experience.

I would ask that you issue a public statement clarifying your position on the use of counter-terrorism sanctions against Sikh activists without due process. I would also urge you to write to the Foreign Secretary to raise these concerns directly, requesting a formal review of the evidence base underpinning this designation and the proportionality of the measures imposed.

I kindly request that all details of this correspondence and my personal information are kept strictly confidential and are not shared with any third parties.

I hope you will engage with this matter with the seriousness it demands and stand for due process, proportionality, and the civil liberties of the community you represent.