Canada and India Trade Barbs as Diplomatic Row Widens

Facts

• The row between Canada and India has deepened this week as the countries traded fresh barbs over the 2023 killing of a Sikh separatist leader on Canadian soil.^[1]
• On Wednesday, speaking at a public inquiry into foreign interference in Canadian politics, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau accused India of making a 'massive mistake,' doubling down on his country's allegation that Indian agents had a part to play in the murder of Hardeep Singh Nijjar in June 2023.^[2]
• Earlier this week, Trudeau's government expelled six top diplomats from India. Trudeau said evidence per the Royal Canadian Mounted Police 'cannot be ignored,' after it had accused Indian agents of being linked to Nijjar's murder, as well as 'homicides, extortion and violent acts' relating to other supporters of the pro-Khalistan movement.^[3]
• India's foreign ministry rejected the allegations as 'preposterous' and accused Trudeau of pandering to Canada's Sikh community for political gain. In a tit-for-tat move, the ministry asked six Canadian diplomats, including acting High Commissioner Stewart Ross Wheeler, to leave India by Oct. 19.^[3]
• Trudeau further alleged Wednesday that Indian diplomats collected intelligence on 'Canadians who are opponents or in disagreement with the Modi government,' which made its way to 'criminal organizations like the Lawrence Bishnoi gang to then result in violence against Canadians on the ground.'^[4]
• Responding once again, India described Trudeau's behavior as 'cavalier.' A foreign ministry spokesperson said, 'Canada has presented us no evidence whatsoever in support of the serious allegations that it has chosen to level against India and Indian diplomats.'^[2]

Sources: ^[1]Al Jazeera (a), ^[2]BBC News (a), ^[3]BBC News (b) and ^[4]Al Jazeera (b).

Narratives

• Pro-establishment narrative, as provided by BBC News. Canada wished to handle this in a responsible way. Still, in that process, India made a big mistake in thinking that the Canadian government could allow violence on its citizens and violations of its sovereign territory to go unpunished. Rather than work with Canada, the Indian government's approach was to question Canada's democracy.
• Establishment-critical narrative, as provided by The Indian Express. As Trudeau himself admitted, he made these outlandish accusations without hard evidence, but on the back of intelligence reports he is unable to produce. How can India cooperate if Canada cannot share evidence behind its claims?

Predictions