Canadian PM Justin Trudeau on Friday (local time) said that Canada had shared the “credible allegations” that India’s government may have been involved in the killing of a Khalistani terrorist “weeks ago”, Global News reported.
Addressing a joint press conference with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Trudeau said: “Canada has shared the credible allegations — that I talked about on Monday — with India. We did that many weeks ago. We are there to work constructively with India and we hope that they engage with us so we can get to the bottom of this very serious manner,” said Trudeau.
India, on its part, has repeatedly denied claims of receiving any intel regarding the allegations from Canada before Trudeau’s announcement on Monday revealing them.
Earlier this week, Trudeau had first linked Nijjar’s killing to India. India on Tuesday rejected such allegations calling them ‘absurd’ and ‘motivated’.
The Canadian government also expelled a top Indian diplomat soon after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s allegations.
Nijjar, who was a resident of Canada, was one of India’s most-wanted terrorists, and carried a reward of Rs 10 lakh on his head. He was shot by two unidentified assailants outside a gurdwara in Surrey in British Columbia in Canada on June 18 this year.
The External Affairs ministry in a press release said: “We have seen and rejected the statement of the Canadian Prime Minister in their Parliament, as also the statement by their Foreign Minister. Allegations of the Government of India’s involvement in any act of violence in Canada are absurd and motivated.”
In a tit-for-tat move, India expelled a senior Canadian diplomat further worsening the tensions between the two countries.
Later, MEA spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said no information has been shared by Canada regarding the killing of Nijjar.
“We are willing to look at any specific information that is provided to us, but so far we have received no specific information from Canada,” Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said on Thursday answering queries.
In his news conference in New York on Thursday, the Canadian Prime Minister, however, failed to present any evidence to back Canadian claims. Trudeau was repeatedly quizzed on the nature of the allegations but stuck to reiterating that there were “credible reasons” to believe that India was linked to the death of Nijjar.
A Canadian media report citing government sources said that Ottawa’s allegations are based on both human and signals intelligence and inputs from an ally of the Five Eye intelligence network.
The Five Eyes network is an intelligence alliance consisting of the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada and New Zealand.
Tensions between started brewing after PM Modi ‘scolded’ Trudeau at the Delhi G20 summit over Khalistan supporters attacking Indian diplomatic missions in Canada. Days later, Canada postponed a trade mission to India, planned for October.
Both India and Canada have now issued travel advisories. India has asked its citizens living in or travelling to Canada to exercise caution in view of “growing anti-India activities”.
Also read: From poster boy to unpopular: Canada’s Trudeau losing popularity, was ranked as worst prime minister in 50 years
Also read: Trudeau started fight with India to cover up Chinese interference in Canada, alleges senior journalist Bordman
