India-Canada has been going through a difficult patch recently on the issue of the Khalistani movement in Canada. Signalling a further souring of bilateral ties, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said there are “credible allegations of a potential link” between agents of the Indian government and the killing of a prominent Sikh leader.The death of the Sikh leader, Hardeep Singh Nijjar in June this year where he was slain outside a temple in British Columbia raised tensions between Sikh separatists and the Indian government.Canada PM Justin Trudeau says…Justin Trudeau alleged Indias involvement in the death of Harshdeep Singh Nijjar, a Sikh Khalistani extremist in Canada and said that the Canadian government is investigating the connection between the two during the countrys special parliamentary session on Monday in the Ottawa legislature.“Any involvement of a foreign government in the killing of a Canadian citizen on Canadian soil is an unacceptable violation of our sovereignty. It is contrary to the fundamental rules by which free, open, and democratic societies conduct themselves,” Trudeau said.Credible allegations of potential link: Canadian PM Trudeau accuses India of being behind killing of Khalistani terroristRead @ANI Story |https://t.co/76XZhpJGlw#Canada #JustinTrudeau #India #HardeepSinghNijjar pic.twitter.com/NkK5zhfhtP— ANI Digital (@ani_digital) September 18, 2023He also said that Canada has “declared its deep concerns to the top intelligence and security officials of the Indian government” while urging the Indian government to “cooperate with Canada to get to the bottom of this matter”“Canadian security agencies have been actively pursuing credible allegations of a potential link between agents of the Government of India and the killing of a Canadian citizen, Hardeep Singh Nijjar,” Trudeau said.“In no uncertain terms, any involvement of a foreign government in the killing of a Canadian citizen on Canadian soil is an unacceptable violation of our sovereignty,” he added.Trudeau further talks about his G20 visit to India and said that he raised the concerns about the Khalistani movement and Indian issue with his Indian counterpart, Narendra Modi, personally and directly on the sidelines of the Group of 20 meetings last week. Trudeaus statement emphasizes the soaring bilateral relationship between the two nations.Indian diplomat expelled amid strained India-CanadaLater on Monday, Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Joly said an Indian diplomat in the country had been expelled, as per media reports.Canada expels diplomat after PM Trudeau claims Indian hand in killing of Khalistani leaderRead @ANI Story | https://t.co/3gbQ4Y8Ji8#Canada #JustinTrudeau #MelanieJoly #India pic.twitter.com/RL32mCm00V— ANI Digital (@ani_digital) September 18, 2023This development comes to light after Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau made a statement during an emergency session of the parliament alleging the involvement of India in the killing of the Khalistani leader, Hardeep Singh Nijjar.According to media reports, Melanie Jolly said that the Canadian government had expelled an Indian diplomat, the head of Indias external intelligence agency, R&AW, in Canada, over allegations of the countrys involvement in the killing of the Khalistani leader.However, she did not provide any further details on the diplomats name or the place from where he was expelled, according to the report.“We see this possible breach of sovereignty as completely unacceptable, and so, that is also why were coming (out) with this information (of the expulsion of the Indian diplomat) today,” Joly said at a news conference.Earlier last week, the Canadian government had also announced a halt in the trade relations between the two nations as both governments have not been able to come into a conclusion for the on going Khalisatani extremism in Canada.
