Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said on Tuesday that the decision to go public with allegations about the involvement of Indian government agents in the killing of Sikh separatist leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar was meant to “put a chill” on New Delhi considering such actions, The Canadian Press reported on Tuesday.
On September 18, Trudeau told the Canadian parliament that intelligence agencies were actively pursuing “credible allegations” tying agents of the Indian government to Nijjar’s killing. The Sikh separatist was killed by masked gunmen on June 18 near Vancouver.
Nijjar was a supporter of Khalistan, an independent Sikh nation sought by some groups. He was the head of the Khalistan Tiger Force, which is designated a terrorist outfit in India. India rejected Trudeau’s allegations as “absurd and motivated”.
On November 29, the United States Attorney’s Office, Southern District of New York, also announced that it had filed “murder-for-hire charges” against an Indian national named Nikhil Gupta in connection with his alleged participation in a thwarted plot to assassinate Sikh separatist leader. Though the statement did not name the leader, a report in the Financial Times on November 23 identified him as Gurpatwant Singh Pannun.
On Tuesday, Trudeau said that his statement in Parliament was meant to act as an extra level of deterrence in order to keep Canadians safe.
The Canadian prime minister said he made the statement after weeks of “quiet diplomacy”, during which his government discussed the matter with India at the highest levels, according to The Canadian Press.
To a question on whether these talks with New Delhi were constructive, Trudeau answered in the negative.
He said that after Nijjar’s killing, many Sikhs had raised concerns about their safety and had expressed worries that they were vulnerable.
“We felt that all the quiet diplomacy and all the measures that we put in – and ensured that our security services put in to keep people safe in the community – needed a further level of deterrence, perhaps of saying publicly and loudly that we know, or we have credible reasons to believe, that the Indian government was behind this,” Trudeau said. “And therefore put a chill on them continuing or considering doing anything like this.”
Following Trudeau’s accusations, India had suspended visa services but resumed some operations in October. India had also ordered Canada to withdraw over 40 diplomatic staff from the country.
On October 19, Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Joly said that her government had withdrawn 41 of its 62 diplomats from India amid the bilateral tensions.
Limited-time offer: Big stories, small price. Keep independent media alive. Become a Scroll member today!
Our journalism is for everyone. But you can get special privileges by buying an annual Scroll Membership. Sign up today!