India made ‘horrific mistake’ violating Canadian sovereignty, says Trudeau

The new Justin Trudeau statement deepens row between India and Canada over New Delhi’s alleged targeting of Sikh dissidents.

Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has accused India’s government of orchestrating violence in the country, the latest chapter in a growing rift over New Delhi’s alleged targeting of Canada-based Sikh separatists.

Trudeau levelled the charges during an inquiry on foreign interference Wednesday, saying there are “ever clearer indications” that India violated Canada’s sovereignty by targeting Sikh dissidents in its territory.

India’s actions, Trudeau said, are a “horrific mistake”.

The statement comes two days after India and Canada kicked out each other’s top envoys over the rift, which started with the assassination of Sikh separatist leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Vancouver in June 2023.

Later that year, Trudeau said Canada obtained credible evidence to link Indian agents to the assassination of Nijjar, a Canadian citizen who advocated for a Sikh homeland in the form of an independent Khalistani state.

Canadian authorities have since arrested four Indian nationals in connection with the murder, which New Delhi has repeatedly denied involvement in.

On Monday, India again rejected claims it was connected to the killing of Nijjar, who it had labelled a “terrorist”. It called the allegations “preposterous” and a “strategy of smearing India for political gains”.

However, Trudeau, speaking at Wednesday’s inquiry, said Nijjar’s murder was part of an even more extensive Indian operation, with Indian government representatives systematically targeting dissidents inside Canada.

“Violence towards Canadians … has been enabled by and in many cases directed by the Indian government,” said the Canadian premier, citing a national police investigation. He added that New Delhi, when presented with the allegations, had simply doubled down “on attacks against this government”.

While Canada’s government does not want to pick “a fight with a significant trading partner”, Trudeau said he would not waver when “standing up for Canadian sovereignty”.

US accusations

India’s government has also faced accusations from the United States of attempting to assassinate a Sikh separatist on its soil. In November 2023, the US Department of Justice announced charges against Indian national Nikhil Gupta over an alleged plot targeting Sikh American activist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, claiming it was coordinated with an Indian government employee and others.

On Wednesday, a US State Department spokesperson said a meeting between the US and India regarding a probe into the foiled plot was productive.

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Al Jazeera and news agencies