The Indian government has debunked a Canadian report alleging that Prime Minister Narendra Modi knew about a plot to assassinate Sikh separatist leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar and eliminate other prominent activists, calling it part of a “smear campaign.”
The government statement followed a report in the leading Canadian daily The Globe and Mail claiming that Modi was in the loop about the killing of Nijjar and plans to eliminate other prominent separatists.
“We do not normally comment on media reports,” said Randhir Jaiswal, the Ministry of external affairs spokesperson. “However, such ludicrous statements made to a newspaper purportedly by a Canadian government source should be dismissed with the contempt they deserve,” Jaiswal said. “Smear campaigns like this only further damage our already strained ties,” he added.
Najjar was gunned down in June 2023 in a gangland-style killing as he was leaving a gurdwara in Surrey, British Columbia.
The Globe and Mail, quoting an unnamed Canadian national security official, said the Canadian administration believes the scheme to kill Nijjar was led by Union Home Minister Amit Shah.
It added that Modi, external affairs minister S. Jaishankar, and national security advisor Ajit Doval were all allegedly informed about the plan.
The Indian government has accused Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau of playing “vote-bank politics” with a national election due next year.
Canada is home to the largest Sikh population in the world outside India. Nearly 800,000 Sikhs are livingg in Canada. The Indian government has long charged that Canada allows pro-Khalistan “terrorists” free rein in Canada.
Before leaving Canada, the outgoing Indian high commissioner Sanjay Kumar Verma said, “Canada didn’t follow the practice which should have been there. Evidence should have been shared first, but someone [Trudeau] decided to stand in Parliament and talk about a thing for which he has said there was no hard evidence.
“And the day on which he did that, since then, he has made sure that the bilateral relations with India only go downwards, spiraling down,” Verma told the private Canadian network CTV.
Diplomatic tensions escalated further last month after Canada accused Indian diplomats and consular officials of engaging in clandestine activities involving homicides and extortions.
The Canadians called the Indian high commissioner and other diplomats “persons of interest” in the investigation into Nijjar’s death. The stunning accusation resulted in India expelling six Canadian diplomats and withdrawing its high commissioner and five other envoys from Ottawa.
