India on Friday summoned a representative of the Canadian High Commission, while terming the allegations levelled by a Canadian minister against Union Home Minister Amit Shah as “absurd and baseless”, warning that these accusations will further deepen the India-Canada row.
India-Canada row: Amidst the ongoing diplomatic stand-off with Canada, India on Friday summoned a representative of the Canadian High Commission, while terming the allegations levelled by a Canadian minister against Union Home Minister Amit Shah as “absurd and baseless”, warning that these accusations will have serious consequences on India-Canada bilateral ties.
“India has protested in the strongest possible terms the references made by a Canadian minister about Union Home Minister Amit Shah and such absurd and baseless allegations will have serious consequences for bilateral ties between the two countries,” the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), said Saturday.
Addressing the weekly press briefing, MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said the revelation that high Canadian government officials deliberately leaked “unfounded insinuations to international media as part of a conscious strategy to discredit India and influence other nations only confirms the view that the Indian government has long held about the current Canadian government’s political agenda and behavioral pattern.”
Jaiswal warned such “irresponsible actions” will have serious consequences for bilateral ties.
The MEA spokesperson also informed that India summoned a Canadian High Commission representative on Friday and the official was served a diplomatic note to lodge the protest in strongest terms on the “absurd and baseless” references made by the Canadian deputy minister about India’s Union Home Minister.
Canadian minister accuses Shah of ‘ordering violence’ in Canada
MEA’s response came after Canada’s Deputy Foreign Affairs Minister David Morrison on Tuesday alleged that Amit Shah ordered a campaign of violence, intimidation and intelligence-gathering targeting Sikh separatists inside Canada.
Morrison had also told Canadian Parliament members of the national security committee that he had confirmed Shah’s name to The Washington Post, which first reported the allegations. However, Morrison did not reveal how Canada uncovered Shah’s alleged involvement.
The development comes a day after Canada’s spy agency placed India on the list of nations from which Canada faces a risk of a cyber attack, alleging that India had used its cyber capabilities to target Khalistani Sikh separatists and Canadian government networks.
India-Canada row
India-Canada diplomatic ties have taken a nosedive since Prime Minister Trudeau alleged in September 2023 that Indian agents were involved in the killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a Khalistani terrorist, who was shot dead by masked gunmen outside a gurdwara in in Surrey, British Columbia in June that year.
India has repeatedly and vehemently rejected Trudeau’s charges as “absurd” and criticized his government for being soft on Khalistani supporters living in Canada. The Khalistan movement is banned in India but has support among the Sikh diaspora, particularly in Canada.
Last month, India expelled six Canadian diplomats, following which Canada, in a tit-for-tat move also ordered six Indian diplomats to leave the country.
In a statement, the MEA said India received a “diplomatic communication from Canada suggesting that the Indian High Commissioner and other diplomats are ‘persons of interest’ in a matter related to an investigation in that country”.
“We have no faith in the current Canadian government’s commitment to ensure their security. Therefore, the government of India has decided to withdraw the high commissioner and other targeted diplomats and officials,” the MEA had said.
(With inputs from agencies)