Washington, Aug 30 : Khalistani terrorist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, leader of the banned Sikhs for Justice (SFJ) group who has for long been accused of exploiting Sikh issues abroad for promoting his separatist agenda, continues to portray Harjinder Singh, an Indian-origin trucker whose reckless driving in the US claimed three lives, as a victim.

Rather than acknowledging the seriousness of Harjinder's actions, a report detailed on Saturday, Pannun, on behalf of SFJ, downplayed the incident as "a tragic misjudgment". He also offered $100,000 compensation to the victims' families ' a move many critics slammed as a publicity stunt aimed at gaining political mileage.

According to Thailand's media outlet Page 3 News, several US-based Sikh organisations have distanced themselves from SFJ, emphasising that political propaganda must not be used to cover up road safety violations and criminal negligence

The report highlighted that a solemn vigil in Florida held by Sikh community members to honour three victims of the deadly crash was marred by controversial efforts from Pannun to give the tragedy a political spin.

"The vigil was organised to pray for the souls of the deceased ' identified as 30-year-old Herby Dufresne, 37-year-old Faniola Joseph, and 54-year-old Rodrique Dor ' who were killed earlier this month when truck driver Harjinder Singh attempted an illegal U-turn on the Florida Turnpike. Investigators confirmed Singh's tractor-trailer blocked all lanes, leading to a devastating collision with a minivan. Singh has been charged with three counts of vehicular homicide,' the report detailed.

While Sikh families and local residents assembled peacefully with prayers and calls for justice, it said, observers noted that Pannun's intervention shifted the focus from the victims and their grieving families.

"Pannun is once again trying to hijack a community tragedy to push his extremist agenda. This was about honouring the victims, not giving a platform to separatist politics," Page 3 News quoted a Florida-based Sikh community leader who attended the vigil as saying.

However, the report stated that the people mourning the tragedy asserted that the vigil was about remembrance and unity, not about amplifying the extremist narratives of Pannun and his organisation.

"Critics point out that SFJ and its leadership are already under global scrutiny. India has banned the outfit for promoting terrorism, while intelligence agencies in the US, Canada, and the UK have repeatedly flagged its activities as a security concern. Pannun himself is facing multiple terror-financing investigations," the report noted.

/IANS