Calls on Washington to press Modi for State Dept-monitored referendum in ‘Indian-occupied Punjab’
Activist group Sikhs For Justice (SFJ) has committed $1 billion for United States President Donald Trump’s Board of Peace in a bid to seek a referendum for Indian Punjab.
SFJ is a US-based organisation that supports the secession of Punjab from India for the creation of Khalistan.
The board’s inaugural summit was held in Washington on Thursday with member countries pledging funds towards it.
In a post on X a day ago, the group called on Washington to press Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to conduct a State Department–monitored independence referendum in “Indian-occupied Punjab”.
The announcement coincided with a large gathering of Sikhs from across the US, who it said assembled in a show of unity at a Khalistan peace rally in Washington, DC.
During the event, SFJ General Counsel Gurpatwant Singh Pannun presented the White House with a “firm commitment” of $1b.
BREAKING: 🔥
SFJ COMMITS $1 BILLION AT FIRST BOARD OF PEACE MEETING IN D.C.THANK YOU PRESIDENT TRUMP –
KHALISTAN PEACE RALLY IN D.C.In Washington, D.C., as scores of Sikhs from across the United States gathered in unity, Sikhs For Justice committed $1 BILLION to join… pic.twitter.com/xx2AQsDJQ5
— Sikhs For Justice (@SFJ_US_Official) February 19, 2026
“Punjab is a ticking bomb,” Pannun said. “Supporters of the Khalistan Referendum face alleged fake encounters. More than 11,000 Sikh youth have been arrested and branded as ‘gangsters’ for their political beliefs.”
He added, “The mission of the Board of Peace is to resolve conflicts before they explode. Before any bloody confrontation, President Trump must prevail and ensure a peaceful, democratic resolution through a monitored referendum.”
SFJ was founded and is primarily headed by Pannun. It was banned in India in 2019 as an unlawful association. The ban came after it started campaigns for a Punjab independence referendum in 2019 to carve out a separate Khalistan.
The organisation has been fighting a long, peaceful legal battle against the Indian government and politicians involved in the 1984 deadly operation against Sikhs since 2011. It had filed criminal and human rights cases in US courts against prominent leaders of the Congress Party (involved in the Golden Temple massacre).
Trump’s Board of Peace was established within the framework of efforts towards a peaceful settlement in the Gaza Strip. It seeks to promote peacemaking around the world. Washington has said additional states have since joined the initiative.
A US-backed ceasefire agreement has been in place in Gaza since October 10, halting Israel’s two-year onslaught that has killed more than 72,000 people, mostly women and children, and injured over 171,000 since October 2023.
Despite the ceasefire, Israeli forces have committed hundreds of violations through shelling and gunfire, killing 611 Palestinians and injuring 1,630, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry.
