What’s going on between Canada and India? Diplomatic row deepens

Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has accused India of making a “horrific mistake” arsenic the diplomatic enactment betwixt the 2 nations intensified.

Speaking astatine a nationalist enquiry this week, Mr Trudeau criticised India, accusing the South Asian state of interfering with Canada's sovereignty and vowing to respond.

“We are not looking to provoke oregon make a combat with India,” Mr Trudeau said connected Wednesday.

“The Indian authorities made a horrific mistake successful reasoning that they could interfere arsenic aggressively arsenic they did successful the information and sovereignty of Canada. We request to respond successful bid to guarantee Canadians’ safety.”

The nationalist proceeding came aft the decease successful June 2023 of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a Canadian national who was murdered extracurricular a Sikh temple successful Canada.

Three Indian men were arrested successful aboriginal 2024 and charged with his execution amid speculation that India’s authorities whitethorn person been involved. Officials successful Delhi, wherever Nijjar was identified arsenic a terrorist, contradict the claims.

Tensions betwixt the 2 nations person continued to turn since the incident.

Both countries restricted visa entree for nationals wishing to sojourn each nation, but the bans were aboriginal lifted.

So what precisely has contributed to crumbling diplomatic relations and what does it mean for the 2 countries?

Mr Nijar was a Sikh person who had moved to Canada from India successful 1997. He had antecedently called for the instauration of an autarkic Sikh federation successful India’s authorities of Punjab.

Sikhs marque up 2 per cent of India’s population, and Indian authorities aboriginal branded him a “terrorist”.

In the run-up to his death, section reports person implied that Mr Nijar had been warned by Canadian Intelligence that determination mightiness beryllium threats to his safety. He was changeable and killed by 2 masked gunmen connected July 18, 2023.

Mr Trudeau past said that his authorities was investigating “credible allegations perchance linking” India to Mr Nijar’s murder. Delhi officials slammed the allegation arsenic “absurd” and tensions person continued to escalate.

Following the claims, Canada reportedly removed 41 diplomats from India amid frosty tensions. 

In October 2023, India resumed visa operations for Canadian nationals, but the enactment didn’t extremity there.

In aboriginal 2024, India’s High Commissioner said the federation refused to springiness Canada accusation astir Nijjar’s sidesplitting until Canada besides shared its investigation.

India besides expelled six Canadian diplomats successful what appears to beryllium a tit-for-tat diplomatic move.

On Tuesday, an Air India plane had to marque an exigency landing in Canada after a “security threat” was posted online.

The hose said the flight, bound for Chicago, landed successful the metropolis of Iqaluit wherever the passengers were taken disconnected and “re-screened”.

An online connection said it had been “subject to a fig of threats successful caller days” — each of which had proved to beryllium hoaxes.

India’s Ministry of External Affairs said connected Thursday that Canada had presented “no grounds whatsoever” to enactment its “serious allegations” that Indian authorities agents had targeted Canada-based Sikh separatists, including Mr Nijar.

Canada hasn’t publically provided immoderate impervious of India’s engagement successful Mr Nijar’s murder. According to AP, an anonymous authoritative confirmed that Mr Trudeau had reportedly spoken to the US medication astir their findings.

When Mr Trudeau archetypal made the allegations, helium said: “Any engagement of a overseas authorities successful the sidesplitting of a Canadian national connected Canadian ungraded is an unacceptable usurpation of our sovereignty. Canada is simply a rule-of-law country; the extortion of our citizens and defence of our sovereignty are fundamental.”

Days later, helium added: “We are simply laying retired the facts arsenic we recognize them, and we privation to enactment with the authorities of India to laic everything wide and to guarantee determination are due processes.

“India and the authorities of India request to instrumentality this substance with the utmost seriousness.”

Canada is location to 1 of the largest overseas communities of Indian origin. The 2 nations person shared fruitful commercialized and commercialized ties successful the past.

However, relations person soured since past year.

India has claimed that Canada was sympathising with the Sikh separatist movement. It accused the North American state of harbouring “terrorists and extremists”.

In 2023, India’s overseas curate Subrahmanyam Jaishankar said: “For us, however Canada has dealt with the Khalistani contented has been a long-standing interest because, precise frankly, they look to beryllium driven by vote-bank politics.”

The Khalistan question is simply a separatist organisation created by Sikhs to make a sovereign authorities successful India’s Punjab.

Sikhism was calved successful Punjab and the bulk of radical successful the authorities travel the religion contempt it being a number content successful wider India.

Sikh separatists person called connected aggregate occasions for the instauration of Khalistan to beryllium created successful Punjab. These demands adjacent led to a convulsive insurgency successful the 1970s and Eighties.

Before his death, Mr Nijjar was a salient campaigner calling for the instauration of Khalistan.