A furious diplomatic row between India and Canada has pushed an otherwise fringe separatist campaign for an independent Sikh homeland in Punjab into the international spotlight.

There are roughly 770,000 Sikhs in Canada, about 2 per cent of the population - the largest Sikh community outside India Ottawa's accusations this week detailing a deadly Indian campaign against its Canada-based critics may have further derailed bilateral relations - but to Sikh activists,

The latest flare-up in diplomatic tensions comes a year after Ottawa accused New Delhi of being involved in the assassination of a Sikh separatist leader on Canadian soil.