OTTAWA — Canada’s New Democratic Party (NDP) has renewed its demand that the federal government prevent Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) chief Mohan Bhagwat from entering Canada and conduct a comprehensive investigation into the organization’s alleged foreign-interference activities.
The demand comes ahead of Bhagwat’s planned visit to Canada later this month. NDP Foreign Affairs Critic Heather McPherson and NDP Immigration and Public Safety Critic Jenny Kwan have written to Canada’s ministers responsible for foreign affairs, public safety and immigration, urging the government to take action.
Kwan, the NDP MP for Vancouver East, argued that Canada’s immigration system must be used to protect Canadians, democratic institutions and vulnerable communities. She said relevant provisions of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act should be applied if individuals are found to be inadmissible because of activities that threaten Canada’s security or democratic institutions.
The NDP is also renewing its longstanding call for Canada to ban the RSS, designate it as a terrorist entity and impose sanctions on connected networks. The party alleges that the organization promotes hatred and violence against religious minorities and that its networks have been involved in intimidation and foreign-interference activities affecting communities in Canada.
McPherson said the proposed visit has raised concerns among minority communities, arguing that the presence of the RSS leadership could increase fears about intimidation, hatred and violence. The NDP says the government should send a clear message that Canada will not tolerate activities that threaten vulnerable communities or undermine democratic institutions.
The issue has also attracted support from a broader group of Canadian civil-society organizations. According to the NDP, more than 200 Canadian civil-society organizations signed a joint letter on August 6 calling for Bhagwat to be denied entry to Canada.
The NDP’s latest intervention comes against the backdrop of Canada’s broader debate over foreign interference. Parliamentary investigations have previously examined allegations involving foreign states and efforts to influence Canadian democratic institutions. In a 2024 House of Commons intervention, Kwan cited the National Security and Intelligence Committee of Parliamentarians’ findings concerning foreign interference and described the issue as a serious threat to Canada’s democratic processes.
Kwan’s latest position places particular emphasis on the protection of diaspora communities, including Sikhs and other religious minorities. The NDP says United Nations human-rights experts have recently called on Canada to ensure that members of the Sikh community are protected from violent threats by Hindutva extremist groups, including the RSS.
The controversy now puts the Canadian government under pressure to explain what security and immigration assessments, if any, are being conducted ahead of Bhagwat’s proposed visit. The NDP is demanding that Ottawa examine the allegations rigorously rather than treating the matter as simply a political or diplomatic dispute.
At the centre of the debate is a larger question about the limits of foreign political and ideological organizations operating within Canada. The NDP argues that freedom of expression and political association cannot be used as a shield for foreign interference, intimidation or activities that threaten public safety and democratic institutions.
For the Canadian Punjabi and Sikh diaspora, the controversy is likely to receive particular attention because of longstanding concerns about foreign interference, transnational intimidation and the safety of community activists and political dissidents in Canada.
The Canadian government has yet to announce whether it will accept the NDP’s demand to deny Bhagwat entry or consider the party’s call for the RSS to be placed on the terrorist-entities list. The NDP, meanwhile, is pressing Ottawa for concrete action before the proposed visit later this month.