UPDATE - India made ‘horrific mistake’ by perpetrating secret operations on Canadian territory: Trudeau

UPDATES WITH REACTION FROM NEW DELHI, CHANGES IN DECK

By Barry Ellsworth

TRENTON, Canada (AA) - Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau alleged Wednesday that India made a “horrific mistake” by committing violent acts, including homicide and extortion on Canadian soil.

Trudeau, appearing before a federal inquiry into foreign interference, said there are “ever clearer indications” of New Delhi’s criminal activity, including the targeting of Sikh dissidents in Canada.

The remarks come after Canada expelled six Indian diplomats on Monday, and the national police force identified them as persons of interest in the June 2023 assassination of Canadian-Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Najjar, a vocal supporter of the creation of a separate Sikh state in India.

Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) Commissioner Michael Duheme alleged at a news conference Monday that there were links between the Indian government and “widespread violence” in Canada, including murders and threats targeting Sikhs.

India responded by calling the charge “preposterous” and kicked out six Canadian diplomats.

The accusations are so serious that the federal standing committee on public safety and national security scheduled an emergency meeting Friday to investigate the alleged covert operations by Indian agents in Canada, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation reported.

“Violence towards Canadians … has been enabled by and in many cases directed by the Indian government,” said Trudeau.

Trudeau said the RCMP held the news conference to make the charges public to curtail future violent acts instigated by New Delhi. The acts included drive-by shootings and extortion. ​​​​​​​

Despite the allegations, Trudeau said he does not want to pick “a fight with a significant trading partner” but he could not allow the violent trespassing on Canadian soil by New Delhi.

In New Delhi, Indian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said in a statement that "what we have heard today only confirms what we have been saying consistently all along - Canada has presented us no evidence whatsoever in support of the serious allegations that it has chosen to level against India and Indian diplomats.”

“The responsibility for the damage that this cavalier behaviour has caused to India-Canada relations lies with Prime Minister Trudeau alone,” claimed the spokesperson.

*Ahmad Adil in New Delhi contributed to this story