(Ottawa) India is very concerned about “threats to national security” emanating from Canada, said Tuesday the High Commissioner of India to Canada, Shri Sanjay Kumar Verma, describing the crimes occurring on Canadian soil as “unfortunate”.
The diplomat wanted to burst the abscess from the first minutes of his speech in front of an audience of guests from the Council on International Relations of Montreal (CORIM), by addressing the “negative” aspects of ties between Canada and India.
“Each of you is well aware of the stories that are covered by the media – it’s a bit tainted, but there should still be some facts in there,” he said on a stage set up in a Montreal hotel.
“There have been unfortunate crimes [ayant visé] people who are currently Canadian citizens, in large part,” he continued, referring to “foreigners” with bad intentions regarding “the territorial integrity of India”.
“It’s a red line for us. Indians will decide India’s destiny, not foreigners, insisted High Commissioner Shri Sanjay Kumar Verma. My concern is national security [indienne], and the threats that come from Canadian territory. »
His presence at the CORIM event comes a few days after the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) arrested three men of Indian nationality in connection with the murder of Sikh leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar.
The latter was a supporter of the creation, in India, of an independent Sikh state called Khalistan.
Charges of conspiracy to commit murder and premeditated murder were formally laid Tuesday against Karan Brar, 22, Kamalpreet Singh, 22, and Karanpreet Singh, 28, in Provincial Court in Surrey, British Columbia.
PHOTO INTEGRATED HOMICIDE INVESTIGATION TEAM, PROVIDED BY THE CANADIAN PRESS
Kamalpreet Singh, Karanpreet Singh and Karan Brar
Demonstrators from the Sikh community gathered outside the Provincial Court building. They were not able to see the suspects, the appearance having been made by videoconference. The date of the next appearance has been set for May 21, except for Kamalpreet Singh, who must find a lawyer.
India blames Canada
This is a significant development in this affair which has caused a diplomatic crisis between Canada and India.
Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar responded to the arrests by attacking Canada, which he accused of being a haven for criminals.
“The fact is that a number of gang members, a number of people with links to organized crime in Punjab, have been welcomed into Canada,” he said in India on Saturday.
“They are wanted criminals in India, you gave them visas… and yet you allow them to live there,” criticized the head of Indian diplomacy during an event in Bhubaneswar.
“We are not being lax, and the Indian Minister of Foreign Affairs is entitled to his opinion,” replied the Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, Marc Miller, on Monday.
PHOTO SPENCER COLBY, THE CANADIAN PRESS
The Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, Marc Miller
Although he flatly refused to confirm the immigration status of the three accused, he nevertheless assured that the Canadian government checked the criminal background of anyone applying for a student visa.
For her part, Minister of Foreign Affairs Mélanie Joly reaffirmed the Canadian position.
” We [a] said since last fall that there were credible allegations that a Canadian was killed in Canada by Indian agents,” she said in a press scrum on Tuesday.
And for the rest, diplomacy gives better results behind closed doors, she argued.
“As for the relationship with India, I think it is always preferable for diplomacy to take place in private,” argued Minister Joly.
The Bishnoi gang
According to sources close to the investigation consulted by CBC, the three alleged murderers of Hardeep Singh Nijjar are associated with the Bishnoi gang.
The leader of the criminal group, Lawrence Bishnoi, claimed responsibility last September for the assassination, in Winnipeg, of a man accused of crimes in India, Sukhdool Singh Gill, alias Sukha Duneke.
The gang, which originated in the state of Punjab, is motivated more by “the greed” than by political convictions, says Serge Granger, professor of political science at the University of Sherbrooke.
“They are hired shooters. They have already killed Sikh leaders in India, whose business card was known to the Indian authorities,” explains the India specialist.
There is little doubt in his mind that New Delhi will deny any involvement in this affair, and that an official will be found to blame if the complicity of the Indian state is established.
The RCMP continues to investigate this aspect of the story.
“Separate investigations are currently being carried out into different aspects of the case […]including a review into the involvement of the Government of India,” said Deputy Commissioner David Teboul.
With The Canadian Press