Monday, July 3 2006 18:20 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Toronto: Babbar Khalsa International terrorist Bachan Singh Sogi, accused of plotting to assassinate former Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal, his son Sukhbir and former state DGP K P S Gill has been deported by Canada.

Singh, 45, was removed yesterday from Riviere des Prairies detention centre in north-end Montreal after Canada's Public Security Minister Stockwell Day rejected his plea challenging a June 23 court order.

Singh's lawyer Mai Nguyen, human rights groups and members of the Sikh community, had opposed his deportation to India, contending he would be tortured if sent back.

Last week, Day had denied this request. The Court passed the order despite a request from the UN Committee against torture to delay the deportation while it examines the case.

The BKI has denied the charge that Sogi was involved in a plot to assassinate senior Punjab officials.

Authorities believe Singh has ties with BKI, the group allegedly responsible for the 1985 Air India bombing that killed 331 people off the Irish Coast.

Jailed on preventative detention following a one-year investigation by the Canadian Security and Intelligence Service that began soon after his arrival in Canada in 2001, Singh was never formally charged.

Canada Border Services Agency spokesperson Amelie Morin said, "There are no more impediments to his removal."