WATCH: Ahead of ICC World Cup 2023, Khalistan graffiti painted outside govt office in Himachal Pradesh's Dharamsala

A wall of a government office in Himachal Pradesh’s Dharamsala was defaced with ‘Khalistan Zindabad’ graffiti, barely days ahead of the ICC World Cup match scheduled in the hill stop stadium. The Khalistan graffiti was seen outside a government office in the Kangra district of Dharamshala. The police swept into action immediately after getting the information and painted the wall to remove the slogan. Dharamshala Police said they are investigating the matter.

#WATCH | Himachal Pradesh: Khalistan graffiti seen outside government office in Dharamshala, Kangra district. The police took immediate action and painted the wall to remove the slogan. Dharamshala Police is investigating the matter.

(Visuals confirmed by SP Kangra) pic.twitter.com/5rodmRNRd7

— ANI (@ANI) October 4, 2023

The much-awaited ICC Word Cup 2023 starts on 5 October. As many as five matches will be played in Dharamsala with the first match being played on 7 October between Bangladesh and Afghanistan. Late last month, banned outfit Sikhs for Justice (SFJ) leader Gurpatwant Singh Pannun had threatened to disrupt the upcoming ICC Cricket World Cup 2023. “The SFJ is going to storm Ahmedabad with Khalistani flags. We will storm Modi stadium and turn the world cricket cup into world terror cup to avenge (Hardeep Singh) Nijjar’s killing," Pannun had said in a communication sent to the media. The first ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 on 5 October will be played at Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, Gujarat. Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar was wanted by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) for his role in terror activities and killed in the parking lot of Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdwara, Surrey, on 18 June this year. However, this is not the first time miscreants defaced walls with Khalistani slogans. In May, this year, flags of ‘Khalistan’ were found draped over the gates and boundary wall of the Himachal Pradesh Legislative Assembly in Dharamshala. Pro-Khalistan graffiti was also painted the walls. Earlier this year, Himachal Pradesh had banned vehicles carrying Bhindranwale and Khalsitani flags, which agitated the SFJ. The organisation had announced that it would hoist the Khalistani flag on 29 March but could not do so due to heavy security. Similar graffiti was found on the outer walls of Vidhan Sabha complex in Dharamsala few months ago. At that time, US-based separatist Gurpatwant Singh Pannu had claimed responsibility for the act.