Every day, the correspondents’ club describes how the same news story is illustrated in other countries.
Canada’s revelations on the possible involvement of Indian secret services in the assassination of a Canadian of Sikh origin in Vancouver have created, in recent days, a real shock wave between the two countries. Hardeep Singh Nijjar, the leader of a Sikh temple, was assassinated in June 2023. Expulsion of a diplomat on the Canadian side, blocking of visas on the Indian side, tension is rising between Ottawa and New Delhi.
India requests extradition of Hardeep Singh Nijjar
India strongly denies Canada’s accusations and responded with strong retaliatory measures. The first measure was to interrupt, on Thursday, September 21, the processing of any new visas for Canadians, until further notice. Tourism or business to India is therefore suspended. The second measure is to reduce the Canadian diplomatic staff in India, which could be almost halved. India therefore wants to suffocate Canadian diplomacy and the business community that works with India. With the aim of making the Canadian government of Justin Trudeau pay a political price for the public accusations and for the lack of action against the Sikh independence movements.
Generally speaking, the media, largely controlled by the government, adopt its nationalist line and fight Justin Trudeau’s accusations. On the other hand, students are worried about this diplomatic war: more than 200,000 young Indians go to study in Canada each year, and fear that these measures will slow down the issuance of visas or compromise their security in Canada.
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New Delhi has argued for years that Sikh independence groups operating in Canada represent a danger to India’s security. This diaspora was used to support and finance the independence rebellion which bloodied Indian Punjab in the 1980s, causing hundreds of deaths. Today, these groups would serve as a cover for criminal activities. Hardeep Singh Nijjar was the president of a major Sikh temple in British Columbia. He had also been wanted for around ten years by India, which accused him of plotting a bomb attack against a cinema in Punjab, or of arms trafficking between Pakistan and Punjab. Hardeep Singh Nijjar was the subject of an Interpol arrest warrant, like several other members of this movement accused of similar crimes. New Delhi has shared this information with Ottawa in recent years, to request their arrest or extradition, but without result. And this could have led to the frustration of India, which would have decided to act and shoot down this Canadian independence activist.
Canada is home to the world’s largest Sikh community outside of India
For several observers, Canada wants to show other countries that they do not have the right to intervene on its territory. Canadian authorities are said to have received information by wiretapping from its allies, which is confirmed by the American ambassador in Ottawa. Intercepted conversations between employees at the Indian embassy suggest that the country’s secret services played a role in the murder of Hardeep Sing Nijjar. By making some of this information public, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is taking the lead. In recent months, his opponents have accused him of ignoring the threats that Canadian citizens from China receive from their former government. Not to mention possible Chinese interference in Canadian elections. This time, Justin Trudeau wanted to strike a big blow by taking a stand for the Sikhs of Canada.
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India’s suspension of the issuance of new visas to Canadians is a real disaster for the many Canadian citizens who have family in India. This also comes at a bad time as Canada has just launched a trade offensive towards this region of the globe less than a year ago. The signing of a free trade treaty between the two countries is on hold and Canadian entrepreneurs no longer really know which way to go. Universities are also worried. India is the first country from which foreign students come, which plays a determining role for their finances. Another important point, traditional allies like the United States, the United Kingdom and France avoid taking up the cause in this story. They are leaving Canada alone to make accusations against the Indian secret services, not wanting to upset such an important trading partner.
The 800,000 Canadian Sikhs form the largest group of this minority outside India. And traditionally, the ruling Liberal party in Canada has important ties with this community. This support undoubtedly largely explains the current standoff with India.