A significant development has emerged in the strained relations between India and Canada, as six Indian diplomats, led by High Commissioner Sanjay Kumar Verma, are set to return to India by Saturday afternoon. This move comes amidst concerns of harassment by pro-Khalistani elements backed by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau .
The withdrawal of these diplomats will reduce India’s diplomatic representation in Canada to nine, while Canada will still maintain 15 diplomats in India. Prior to the current tensions, India had 12 resident diplomats in Ottawa and 62 Canadian diplomats in Delhi.
Critics accuse Trudeau of aligning with Jagmeet Singh’s New Democratic Party, which has been targeting Canadian Hindus for their perceived opposition to Sikhs and Muslims. Trudeau is also expected to seek support from other Canadian parties to target India over the murder of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a Khalistan Tiger Force terrorist, on June 18, 2023.
The Canadian government has broken the unwritten convention of not targeting diplomats through criminal cases. Trudeau has briefed the Five Eyes Alliance on the diplomatic war with India, while Pakistan’s deep state allegedly works through the National Council of Canadian Muslims to drive a wedge between India and Canada.
Canada watchers believe Trudeau will utilize the Foreign Interference Commission and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) to implicate India in the Nijjar case. However, questions arise as to why no charge sheet has been filed, and no evidence linking Indian agents to the murder has been shared.
Indian intelligence claims Canadian officials in Delhi and Chandigarh engaged in surreptitious activities, radicalizing the Sikh community in Punjab and fueling the farmers’ movement and human rights narrative against the Modi government.
As tensions escalate, concerns grow over the implications of this diplomatic row on India-Canada relations. The international community watches closely as the situation unfolds.