The former Sikh separatist militant and convicted attempted murderer whose invitation to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau‘s official events in India sparked a political controversy has been charged with uttering threats.
Court documents show that a Jaspal Singh Atwal was charged with “uttering threats to cause death or bodily harm,” in connection with an April 23 incident in Surrey, B.C.
Global News can confirm that the man is the same Jaspal Atwal synonymous with the infamous “Atwal affair” that erupted in the wake of Trudeau’s trip to India in February.
Atwal was released on $1,000 bail before reappearing in a provincial court in Surrey on Thursday; he is scheduled to make his next court appearance on May 24.
It is not known who was the target of his alleged threats.
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Atwal, who was convicted of trying to assassinate an Indian cabinet minister in B.C. in 1986, became a central figure in Trudeau’s troubled visit to India after he was spotted hobnobbing with members of the Canadian government delegation at an event in Mumbai.
He was also invited to a second event in New Delhi, but his invitation was rescinded after media exposed his identity to the public.
B.C. Liberal MP Randeep Sarai said he was solely responsible for the invite, but a Trudeau government official — who was not identified at the time — told reporters that rogue factions within the Indian government arranged the invitation to sabotage the trip, a suggestion that the Indian government slammed as “baseless and unacceptable.”
The official was later revealed to be national security adviser Daniel Jean.
WATCH: Conservative MP calls Atwal affair ‘Liberal scandal’
Jean testified about the issue in the House of Commons last month, and defended his decision to speak with reporters by saying that he was obliged to counter what he described as “misinformation” circulated by Canadian news outlets.