The list of persons expelled from India also includes Deputy High Commissioner Patrick Hebert and four first secretaries of the Canadian Embassy. The diplomats were asked to leave India by or before noon on October 19.
Earlier in the day, the Indian Foreign Ministry dismissed Canada's claims that Indian High Commissioner to Ottawa Sanjay Kumar Verma was involved in a plot to assassinate Sikh separatist leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar. India also recalled Kumar Verma and a number of other diplomats from Canada due to concerns for their safety.
Meanwhile, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) accused India of illegally collecting information on Canada as well as organizing assassinations and violent acts through its diplomats in the country.
"The RCMP has obtained evidence that demonstrates four very serious issues: 1. Violent extremism impacting both countries; 2. Links tying agents of the Government of India (GOI) to homicides and violent acts; 3. The use of organized crime to create a perception of an unsafe environment targeting the South Asian Community in Canada; and 4. Interference into democratic processes," the statement read.
There is also evidence that Indian diplomats and consular officials based in Canada engaged in "clandestine activities," such as collecting information for the Indian government, in some cases through coercion, the RCMP said.
"The information collected ... is then used to target members of the South Asian community," the police added.
The RCMP said that they had presented the evidence to the Indian authorities, and expressed their hope that the situation would be resolved for the benefit of the safety and security of the Canadian public and South Asian community in Canada.
In June 2023, Nijjar was fatally shot by two masked gunmen in a parking lot of a Sikh temple in Surrey, British Columbia. He advocated for the creation of an independent Sikh state in northern India called Khalistan. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said last September that Ottawa was examining "credible allegations" linking Indian officials to the killing of Nijjar. New Delhi rejected the allegations.
Following the incident, Canada expelled a high-ranking Indian diplomat allegedly linked to the country's foreign intelligence. In response, the Indian authorities ordered a senior Canadian diplomat to leave India.
Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar said in January that Canada's policy toward the Khalistan Liberation Force had a negative impact on Indian-Canadian relations.