After Prime Minister Narendra Modi allegedly knew about a reported plan targeting Sikh activists, India warned Canada of “further injury” to now strained relations.
The largest Hindu community in the world is found in Canada, along with protesters for” Khalistan,” a border separatist movement seeking independence for the spiritual minority carved out of American country.
Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a well-known Khalistan activist, and another Sikh activists who are connected to the motion have previously been accused of being part of India’s plot to kill them in Vancouver in 2023.
After being detained by Indian officials for alleged violence offenses and conspiracy to commit murder, Nijjar, 45, denied the accusations he had made that he had been shot dead by masked gunmen outside the Sikh church.
Both countries next month suspended another round of older diplomats, which has caused diplomatic relations to deteriorate due to repeated denials of the allegations.
New Delhi has recently disputed that Interior Minister Amit Shah plotted to kill Sikh protesters on American soil and publicly criticized Ottawa for what it called an “absurd and false” argument.
On Tuesday ( Nov 19 ), The Globe and Mail reported that Canadian security officials “believed” Modi to be aware of the alleged campaign targeting Sikh activists in Canada.
The Indian government’s statement read in late on Wednesday read,” For ridiculous statements made to a paper apparently by a French government source should be treated with the contempt they deserve.”
This just adds to the already strained relations between our adversaries, according to the statement.
An unidentified American official claimed that Ajit Doval and Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, the country’s foreign minister, were “also in the loop,” according to an unnamed official in the paper.
According to the official, “it would be undeniable that three senior political figures in India would not have spoken with Mr. Modi about the precise deaths before proceeding,” the national told the Toronto everyday.