Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has provoked a diplomatic furore in bilateral relations with India after telling the House of Commons that his security agencies had been “actively pursuing credible allegations of a potential link between agents of Government of India” and the killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar.
Nijjar, the chief of secessionist group Khalistan Tiger Force (KTF) and a designated terrorist under India’s Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA), was shot dead at a Sikh community centre at Surrey, British Columbia in June. The Indian government had in place a bounty of $16,000 for information leading to Nijjar’s arrest.
According to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police’s (RCMP) Integrated Homicide Investigation Team (IHIT), the investigation into Nijjar’s death is still ongoing.
The RCMP has said that authorities are on the lookout for two “heavy-set” suspects, who apparently shot him in his truck.
The most recent update shared by RCMP on 16 August stated that investigators were seeking information about a suspect vehicle which was waiting for the two alleged shooters while the Nijjar’s murder was taking place.
As the Canadian investigators are yet to figure out the case entirely, there are wide-ranging concerns in India (and around the world) as to what made Trudeau name New Delhi in the Parliament.
Moreover, there is the question if Canada jumped the gun in expelling an Indian diplomat in view of alleged foreign “interference” from New Delhi.
Who Blames India for Nijjar’s Death?
Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, a pro-Khalistan activist and the founder of US-headquartered advocacy group Sikhs for Justice (SFJ), has squarely put the onus of Nijjar’s killing on Sanjay Verma, Indian High Commissioner to Canada.
In fact, Pannun has issued a video message threatening Hindus to leave Canada following the diplomatic row between New Delhi and Ottawa.
Further, Pannun has called for a ‘Shaheed Nijjar (martyr Nijjar)’ Khalistan referendum on October 29. Notably, India has all along been critical of the so-called referendum advocating for carving out a separate Sikh homeland from India.
While he may be hero to a handful of pro-Khalistan activists, Pannun is wanted by Indian police in at least 22 cases ranging from abetting mutiny, causing a riot and creating disturbance at a place of worship, as per official records cited in media.
Significantly, Trudeau’s coalition partner Jagmeet Singh, who heads the New Democratic Party (NDP), has pledged to “holding (Prime Minister) Narendra Modi accountable” in the case.
However, Singh’s past track record isn’t much inspiring either, according to reports in Canadian media.
The bombing left 329 people dead, a majority of them being Canadian-origin Indians.
Talwinder Singh Parmar, who Canadian public enquiries have blamed for being behind the blast mastermind, remains an icon for the likes of Pannun. In fact, Parmar’s portrait has figured on the ‘Khalistan referendum’ posters shared by Pannun.
Was Trudeau Unhappy With Khalistan-BJP Peace Talks?
As reported in Canadian media, Trudeau and the hardline Khalistan supporters in Canada were unhappy with the thawing in tensions between Canada-based Khalistanis and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
In 2018, Trudeau, with the backing from hardline Khalistan activists, reportedly obstructed peace talks between the Indian ruling establishments and radical Sikh supporters.
In fact, there is speculation in the Canadian Sikh diaspora that the killing of Ripudaman Singh Malik, a former aide of Air India bombing mastermind Parmar, was carried out by pro-Khalistan radicals.
Malik, a high-profile Sikh businessman, was fatally shot at his home in Surrey, British Columbia. The RCMP has convicted two unknown men in their 20s for his death.
Malik was killed soon after being acquitted of any role in the Air India flight bombing.
In the later years of his life, he mended fences with the Indian authorities and was one of the key figures batting for closer links between India and Canada-based Sikhs.