On Monday, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau stated that India’s government may be implicated in the murder of Sikh community leader and gurdwara president Hardeep Singh Nijjar. Nijjar, an advocate for an independent Sikh state known as “Khalistan” in Punjab, India, was gunned down on June 18 in the parking lot of his place of worship in Surrey, British Columbia.
Addressing the House of Commons, Trudeau announced that Canadian intelligence agencies are investigating “credible allegations of a potential link” between India’s government and the killing of Nijjar. “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 expressed.
Further, he stated that during the recent G20 summit in New Delhi, he had confronted Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi with these accusations. Ensuring justice, Trudeau assured the Canadian government’s commitment to taking “all steps” necessary to hold those responsible for the murder accountable and urged the Indian government to cooperate in the ongoing investigation into Nijjar’s killing.
Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Jolie also indicated that a “top Indian diplomat” has been expelled from Canada in response to these allegations.
New Democratic Party leader Jagmeet Singh, who is Sikh, commented on Trudeau’s announcement, stating, “To hear the prime minister of Canada corroborate a potential link between a murder of a Canadian citizen on Canadian soil by a foreign government is something that I could never have imagined.”
Indian authorities, who earlier alleged that Nijjar led a terrorist group named “Khalistan Tiger Force”, linked him to a 2007 cinema bombing in Punjab. Nijjar, a subject of a 2014 Interpol red notice issued by India regarding the bombing, was also accused by Indian intelligence agencies in 2016 of operating a terror camp in British Columbia to carry out attacks in Punjab. Nijjar consistently denied these allegations.
Tensions are predominantly high between India’s government and Khalistan separatists. Earlier this month, during the G20 summit, Indian PM Modi raised issues with pro-Khalistan protests in Canada during his meeting with Trudeau. In the aftermath of Nijjar’s death in July, a person was also arrested during a protest and counter-protest outside the Indian consulate in Toronto.
As of current, an unofficial global referendum, organized by the US-based Sikhs for Justice group, is underway, questioning Sikhs’ desire for an independent Punjab.
At the time of reporting, neither PM Modi nor the Indian government has responded to Trudeau’s statements.