By Krishn Kaushik, Sakshi Dayal and Promit Mukherjee
NEW DELHI/OTTAWA (Reuters) – Canada expelled six Indian diplomats together with the excessive commissioner on Monday, linking them to the homicide of a Sikh separatist chief and alleging a broader effort to focus on Indian dissidents in Canada.
Earlier within the day, India retaliated by ordering the expulsion of six high-ranking Canadian diplomats together with the appearing excessive commissioner and mentioned it had withdrawn its envoy from Canada, contradicting Canada’s assertion of expulsion.
The diplomatic row represents a serious deterioration of relations between the 2 Commonwealth international locations. Ties have been frayed since Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau mentioned final yr he had proof linking Indian brokers to the assassination of Sikh chief Hardeep Singh Nijjar on Canadian territory.
The federal government now has “clear and compelling evidence that agents of the government of India have engaged in and continue to engage in activities that pose a significant threat to public safety,” Trudeau mentioned at a information convention.
These actions concerned clandestine data gathering strategies, coercive behaviour, concentrating on South Asian Canadians and involvement in over a dozen threatening and violent acts, together with homicide, he mentioned.
“This is unacceptable,” he mentioned, including that India had dedicated a basic error by participating in felony actions in Canada.
India has lengthy denied Trudeau’s accusations. On Monday, it dismissed Canada’s transfer on the inquiry and accused Trudeau of pursuing a “political agenda.”
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police mentioned in an earlier information convention the federal government of India had undertaken a broad marketing campaign in opposition to Indian dissidents together with homicides and extortion. It had additionally used organised crime to focus on the South Asian group in Canada and interfered in democratic processes, police mentioned.
“The decision to expel these individuals was made with great consideration and only after the RCMP gathered ample, clear and concrete evidence which identified six individuals as persons of interest in the Nijjar case,” the overseas ministry mentioned in an announcement.
India mentioned it had requested six Canadian diplomats to go away by Saturday. The ministry additionally mentioned it had summoned Performing Excessive Commissioner in India Stewart Wheeler, at the moment Canada’s prime diplomat within the South Asian nation.
India mentioned it was withdrawing its diplomats from Canada as a result of it was not assured that their security may very well be assured.
“We have no faith in the current Canadian Government’s commitment to ensure their security. Therefore, the Government of India has decided to withdraw the High Commissioner and other targeted diplomats and officials,” India’s overseas ministry mentioned in an announcement.
MAJOR RUPTURE
Canada’s International Minister Melanie Joly mentioned the federal government had requested India to take away the diplomatic immunity of six diplomats in order that the Canadian investigative businesses may query them concerning the allegations of felony exercise.
However since India didn’t co-operate, it needed to expel the diplomats.
“We’re not seeking diplomatic confrontation with India,” she mentioned. “But we will not sit quietly as agents of any country are linked to efforts to threaten, harass or even kill Canadians.”
Canada withdrew greater than 40 diplomats from India in October 2023 after New Delhi requested Ottawa to scale back its diplomatic presence.
“We have gone from a rift to a major rupture in the relationship with India,” Fen Osler Hampson, professor of worldwide relations at Ottawa’s Carleton College mentioned in a phone interview. “It is hard to see at this juncture that a return to normalcy will happen any time in the foreseeable future.”
Canada is residence to the best inhabitants of Sikhs exterior their residence state of Punjab and demonstrations in recent times have irked India’s authorities
The U.S. has additionally alleged that Indian brokers had been concerned in an tried assassination plot in opposition to one other Sikh separatist chief in New York final yr, and mentioned it had indicted an Indian nationwide working on the behest of an unnamed Indian authorities official.
An Indian authorities committee investigating Indian involvement within the foiled homicide plot will meet U.S. officers in Washington this week, the State Division mentioned on Monday.
The accusations of assassination plots in opposition to Sikh separatist leaders in Canada and the U.S. have examined their relationship with India as they appear to forge deeper ties with the nation to counter China’s rising world affect.
(This story has been corrected to indicate that India mentioned it was withdrawing its diplomats from Canada, not expelling them, as a result of it was not assured their security may very well be assured, in paragraph 11)
