On Friday, the Canadian government said there is no proof of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi or his top officials’ involvement in criminal activities in Canada including the killing of Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar.
The statement was released after a Canadian newspaper which quoted an unnamed official of the national security, claiming that the Indian Union Home Minister Amit Shah had hatched the conspiracy to kill Nijjar. It also said that the idea was known to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Minister of External Affairs Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, and National Security Adviser Ajit Doval. However, the source also said that there is ‘no direct evidence’ for these allegations as well.
Canada’s government categorically rejected the allegations saying, “The government of Canada has not given any statements, and to the best of its knowledge, there is no evidence involving Prime Minister Modi, Minister Jaishankar, or NSA Doval in any serious criminality within Canada. Any suggestion to the contrary is speculative and – at best – inaccurate.”
India reacted sharply, described the newspaper’s allegations as ‘absolutely baseless’, and detrimental to the already deteriorating relations between the two countries. Report by India’s Ministry of external affair, Randhir Jaiswal added, “Criticisms like these only put more gas on a fire that was already burning.”
Since accusation by Canadian PM, Justin Trudeau of India’s complicity in Nijjar’s killing, relations between both countries have got worse. India has described the charges as baseless and political, have claimed that Canada is protecting Khalistan separatist groups.
Other negative impacts which have characterized diplomatic relationship between the two countries include; Dire dispatching of ambassadors from both states.
Nijjar carrying arms and sought by police in India was killed in June 2023, at a gurdwara in Surrey in British Columbia. In February this year, Canadian police detained and charged four Indians with first-degree murder.
