Canada's Minister of Foreign Affairs Mélanie Joly on Friday said the remaining Indian diplomats in their country are “clearly on notice” after they expelled six Indian diplomats including the Indian High Commissioner in Ottawa as they named him 'a person of interest' in the assassination of a Sikh separatist leader.
The relations between India and Canada came under severe strain following Prime Minister Trudeau's allegations in September last year of the "potential" involvement of Indian agents in the killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, who was gunned down in Surrey, British Columbia.
What Did Canada's Minister Of Foreign Affairs Say?
Joly said the government would not tolerate any diplomats who contravene the Vienna Convention or put the lives of Canadians at risk.
Joly, comparing India to Russia, said Canada's national police force has linked Indian diplomats to homicides, death threats and intimidation in Canada.
“We've never seen that in our history. That level of transnational repression cannot happen on Canadian soil. We've seen it elsewhere in Europe. Russia has done that in Germany and the UK and we needed to stand firm on this issue," she said in Montreal.
Asked if other Indian diplomats will be expelled, Joly said: “They are clearly on notice. Six of them have been expelled including the high commissioner in Ottawa. Others were mainly from Toronto and Vancouver and clearly, we won't tolerate any diplomats that are in contravention of the Vienna convention.”
Canada's Earlier Accusations Against Expelled Indian Diplomats
Canada expelled six Indian diplomats alleging their involvement in the death of Nijjar.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police in public statements made it clear that they think Indian diplomats posted in Canada were targeting Sikh separatists by sharing confidential information with their own government. They mentioned the killing of Sikh separatist leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar and the involvement of top Indian diplomats in the case.
Calling out the notorious Bishnoi crime gang, the RCMP said top Indian officials were passing information about Sikh separatists to Indian organised crime groups who were targeting the activists.
India also expelled six Canadian diplomats on Monday and announced that it was withdrawing its High Commissioner in Canada after dismissing Ottawa's allegations linking the envoy to the probe into the killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar.
India Names Canada Border Police Official In Fugitive Terrorist List
India has placed Sandeep Singh Sidhu, a Canadian Border Service Agency (CBSA) official and member of the banned International Sikh Youth Federation (ISYF), on its list of fugitive terrorists for deportation.
Sidhu is accused of promoting terrorist activities in Punjab and allegedly has connections to Khalistani terrorist Lakhbir Singh Rode and ISI operatives. He is implicated in the 2020 assassination of Balwinder Singh Sandhu.
According to Times Now report, Sidhu was recently promoted to superintendent at the CBSA.
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) claims that Khalistani operatives in Canada, including a figure known as "Sunny Toronto," orchestrated Sandhu's murder, though it remains uncertain if this name refers to Sidhu.
India has rejected the Canadian accusations as absurd and politically motivated.
India has repeatedly criticised Trudeau's government for being soft on supporters of the Khalistan movement who live in Canada.
