New Delhi, Oct 14 (UNI) India on Monday slammed Canada for suggesting that the Indian High Commissioner and other diplomats are “persons of interest” in the probe related to the killing of Canadian Sikh Khalistani activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar last year, and said that New Delhi “now reserves the right to take further steps” in response to the concocted allegations against Indian diplomats.
In a strongly worded statement, that comes two days after a brief meeting between Canadian PM Justin Trudeau and PM Modi in Vientiane on the sidelines of the East Asia Summit, India also strongly rejected “these preposterous imputations” and ascribed them to the “political agenda of the Trudeau Government that is centered around vote bank politics” – referring to its alliance with the pro-Khalistani New Democratic Party (NDP) and its leader Jagmeet Singh.
The statement also said that the Trudeau government has “not shared a shred of evidence” with India so far on his allegations made in the Canadian parliament last year alleging an Indian hand in the killing of Nijjar.
The statement also said that the Trudeau government’s allegation against India comes as PM Trudeau is set to depose before a Commission on foreign interference, and that it also serves the anti-India separatist agenda that the Trudeau Government has constantly pandered to for narrow political gains.
It said that High Commissioner Sanjay Kumar Verma is India’s senior most serving diplomat with a distinguished career spanning 36 years and the aspersions cast on him by the Government of Canada are ludicrous and deserve to be treated with contempt.
Meanwhile, according to Canadian news outlets, members of PM Trudeau’s own caucus have begun a new effort to persuade him to step down rather than lead the Liberal Party into the next election.
The MEA statement read:
“We have received a diplomatic communication from Canada yesterday suggesting that the Indian High Commissioner and other diplomats are ‘persons of interest’ in a matter related to an investigation in that country. The Government of India strongly rejects these preposterous imputations and ascribes them to the political agenda of the Trudeau Government that is centered around vote bank politics.
“Since Prime Minister Trudeau made certain allegations in September 2023, the Canadian Government has not shared a shred of evidence with the Government of India, despite many requests from our side. This latest step follows interactions that have again witnessed assertions without any facts. This leaves little doubt that on the pretext of an investigation, there is a deliberate strategy of smearing India for political gains.
“Prime Minister Trudeau’s hostility to India has long been in evidence. In 2018, his visit to India, which was aimed at currying favour with a vote bank, rebounded to his discomfort. His Cabinet has included individuals who have openly associated with an extremist and separatist agenda regarding India. His naked interference in Indian internal politics in December 2020 showed how far he was willing to go in this regard. That his Government was dependent on a political party, whose leader openly espouses a separatist ideology vis-à-vis India, only aggravated matters.
“Under criticism for turning a blind eye to foreign interference in Canadian politics, his Government has deliberately brought in India in an attempt to mitigate the damage. This latest development targeting Indian diplomats is now the next step in that direction.
“It is no coincidence that it takes place as Prime Minister Trudeau is to depose before a Commission on foreign interference. It also serves the anti-India separatist agenda that the Trudeau Government has constantly pandered to for narrow political gains.
“To that end, the Trudeau Government has consciously provided space to violent extremists and terrorists to harass, threaten and intimidate Indian diplomats and community leaders in Canada. This has included death threats to them and to Indian leaders. All these activities have been justified in the name of freedom of speech. Some individuals who have entered Canada illegally have been fast-tracked for citizenship. Multiple extradition requests from the Government of India in respect of terrorists and organized crime leaders living in Canada have been disregarded.
“High Commissioner Sanjay Kumar Verma is India’s senior most serving diplomat with a distinguished career spanning 36 years. He has been Ambassador in Japan and Sudan, while also serving in Italy, Turkiye, Vietnam and China. The aspersions cast on him by the Government of Canada are ludicrous and deserve to be treated with contempt.
“The Government of India has taken cognizance of the activities of the Canadian High Commission in India that serve the political agenda of the current regime. This led to the implementation of the principle of reciprocity in regard to diplomatic representation.
“India now reserves the right to take further steps in response to these latest efforts of the Canadian Government to concoct allegations against Indian diplomats,” it said.
On Friday, October 11, India had said that “there was no substantive discussion” between Prime Minister Modi and Canadian PM Justin Trudeau in Vientiane, and stressed that Ottawa should take firm action, which has been lacking thus far, against anti-India Khalistani activities on Canadian soil.
After Canadian PM Trudeau said at a press conference that he had a “brief exchange” with Prime Minister Modi in Vientiane, sources said that “India continues to expect that anti-India Khalistani activities will not be allowed to take place on Canadian soil and that firm action, which is lacking thus far, will be taken against those advocating violence, extremism and terrorism against India from Canadian territory.”
The sources added that the “growing nexus of such forces with organized crime, drug syndicates and human trafficking should be a concern for Canada as well”.
The source also said that “India attaches importance to relations with Canada but these cannot be repaired unless the Canadian Government takes strict and verifiable action against those who actively pursue anti-India activities and have conspired to promote hate, disinformation, communal disharmony and violence in India as well as Canada.”
The meeting between the Canadian PM and PM Modi in Vientiane came a year after Trudeau accused the Indian government of involvement in the killing of prominent Canadian Sikh Khalistani activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in British Columbia, an allegation that India has rejected.
Trudeau, speaking to the media in Vientiane on the sidelines of the East Asia Summit, said he had “a brief exchange with Prime Minister Modi in which I emphasised that there is work we need to do”.
Elaborating, he said that he had emphasised “that the safety of Canadians, upholding the rule of law, is among the fundamental responsibilities of any Canadian government, and that’s what I’ll stay focused on. Yes, we need to continue to develop our trade ties and our people-to-people ties, but there are real issues that we need to solve here, and we’re going to stay focused on that”, referring to the killing of Nijjar.
Trudeau’s coalition partner is the New Democratic Party (NDP) leader Jagmeet Singh, a known Khalistani supporter.
Appealing to the Khalistani segment of Indo-Canadians, Trudeau said that “Canadians can know and be confident that this is an issue that has remained at the forefront of my mind and my responsibilities as leader since the very beginning.”
Nijjar, a 45-year-old Canadian citizen, was shot dead on June 18, 2023, shortly after evening prayers at his Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdwara in Surrey, British Columbia.
Four Indian nationals are accused of first-degree murder and conspiracy in connection to his murder. The case is currently in the Canadian courts.
