Police have made arrests in connection with the killing of a prominent Sikh separatist leader, according to Canadian media reports.
Hardeep Singh Nijjar, 45, was shot dead last June by two masked gunmen in a busy car park in a Vancouver suburb.
His killing sparked a major diplomatic row between India and Canada, with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau accusing India’s government of involvement in the murder.
Delhi strongly denied the allegation.
Police will hold a press conference later on Friday addressing the months-long investigation into the killing.
Mr Nijjar was a Sikh separatist leader who publicly campaigned for Khalistan – the creation of an independent Sikh homeland in the Punjab region of India.
In the 1970s, Sikhs launched a separatist insurgency in India which saw thousands killed before it was quelled the following decade. Since then, the movement has been mostly limited to countries with large Sikh populations.
India has in the past described Mr Nijjar as a terrorist who led a militant separatist group – accusations his supporters say are unfounded. They say he had received threats in the past because of his activism.
He was shot dead at the Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdwara in Surrey, a city about 30km (18 miles) east of Vancouver on 18 June last year.
Those close to him have said he was warned by Canadian intelligence services before his death that he was on a “hit list” and there had been threats on his life.
Three months after he was killed, Mr Trudeau, standing in the House of Commons, said Canada was looking at “credible allegations potentially linking” the Indian state to the killing.
The allegation had been strongly denied by Indian officials, who accused Canada of providing shelter to “Khalistani terrorists and extremists”.
This a developing story. More updates to follow.
