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India dismisses Canada’s allegation against home minister Amit Shah as ‘absurd’

Nov 02, 2024 06:10 PM IST

India summoned a representative of the Canadian high commission, which has been without an envoy for several weeks, on Friday to lodge a protest on the matter

India on Saturday dismissed as “absurd and baseless” a senior Canadian official’s allegation that Union home minister Amit Shah was connected to activities targeting pro-Khalistan elements on Canadian soil, saying such actions will have “serious consequences” for bilateral ties.

External affairs ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal. (PTI)
External affairs ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal. (PTI)

The Indian side summoned a representative of the Canadian high commission, which has been without an envoy for several weeks, on Friday to lodge a protest on this matter, external affairs ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said. He added some Indian consular officials were also recently informed by Canadian authorities that they “have been and continued to be” under surveillance, an action that New Delhi believes is a violation of diplomatic conventions.

Jaiswal reiterated that Canada has not so far shared “any shred of evidence” with India regarding allegations about Indian government agents being linked to the June 2023 murder of Khalistani separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar or the recent accusations about Indian officials directing criminal gangs to target Khalistani elements in Canada.

The latest developments are set to further worsen bilateral ties, already in crisis mode. India recently withdrew its envoy to Canada and five more diplomats after Canadian authorities sought to question them as “persons of interest” in the investigation into Nijjar’s murder. It also expelled six Canadian diplomats from New Delhi, including the deputy high commissioner.

While deposing before the Canadian Parliament’s Standing Committee on Public Safety and National Security in Ottawa on October 29, deputy foreign minister David Morrison confirmed he had told The Washington Post that Union home minister Amit Shah was connected to criminal activity targeting pro-Khalistan elements in Canada.

Jaiswal said the Indian side summoned a representative of the Canadian high commission on Friday and handed over a diplomatic note that contained a strong protest against the “absurd and baseless references made to the Union home minister of India before the [standing] committee by deputy minister David Morrison”.

“In fact, the revelation that high Canadian officials deliberately leak unfounded insinuations to the international media as part of a conscious strategy to discredit India and influence other nations only confirms the view the government of India has long held about the current Canadian government’s political agenda and behavioural pattern,” Jaiswal said. “Such irresponsible actions will have serious consequences for bilateral ties.”

Responding to a question on surveillance of Indian officials in Canada, Jaiswal said some consular officials were “recently informed by the Canadian government that they have been and continued to be under audio and video surveillance”.

Without giving details about the officials subjected to surveillance, he said: “Their communications have also been intercepted. We have formally protested to the Canadian government as we deem these actions to be a flagrant violation of relevant diplomatic and consular conventions.”

The Canadian government, Jaiswal said, cannot “justify the fact that it is indulging in harassment and intimidation” by citing technicalities. “Our diplomatic and consular personnel are already functioning in an environment of extremism and violence. This action of the Canadian government aggravates the situation and is incompatible with established diplomatic norms and practices,” he said.

India has maintained for some time now that its diplomats and officials in Canada are being intimidated by Khalistani elements, who have issued posters featuring the diplomats and threatening them.

Different aspects of India-Canada ties dominated the weekly media briefing and Jaiswal criticised the actions of Canadian authorities and politicians in several areas, including the reduction of visas for Indians and cancellation of the annual Diwali celebrations at Parliament House in Ottawa.

When Jaiswal was asked about Canada’s National Cyber Threat Assessment 2025-2026 listing India as an “adversary” for the first time, he described it as another example of a “Canadian strategy to attack India” and noted that senior Canadian officials had “openly confessed that they are seeking to manipulate global opinion against India”.

Jaiswal added, “As on other occasions, imputations are made without any evidence.”

Following reports about Canada reducing visas for Indians, New Delhi is monitoring the well-being of students and temporary workers from India who are currently in Canada. “Our concern for their safety and security remains strong,” Jaiswal said.

Responding to another question on Canada’s Leader of Opposition, Conservative Party chief Pierre Poilievre, withdrawing from hosting the annual Diwali celebrations at Parliament House, Jaiswal said it was “unfortunate that the prevailing atmosphere in Canada has reached high levels of intolerance and extremism”.

The move to cancel the celebration, held for 23 years, generated deep disappointment among organisations representing Canadians of Indian origin, including the Overseas Friends of India Canada (OFIC).

Jaiswal was also asked about New Democratic Party leader Jagmeet Singh’s move to get the violence against Sikhs in 1984 to be recognised as “genocide” in Canadian Parliament and said this was part of the extremism, culture of violence and anti-India activities in Canada. “This is our core concern with the Canadian government, and we hope they will take action against these activities,” he said.

India-Canada relations have been in freefall since Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s allegation in September 2023 that Indian government agents were linked to the killing of Nijjar, who was gunned down outside a gurdwara in Surrey. India dismissed Trudeau’s accusation as absurd and forced Canada to withdraw 41 diplomats from the country. Canadian officials have said they shared information with the Indian side, but New Delhi has maintained it hasn’t received any evidence to back up the allegations.

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