19 September, New Delhi, India (ANI): India on Tuesday denied claims made by Justin Trudeau, the prime minister of Canada, that the Indian government was complicit in the killing of Khalistan Tiger Force commander Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Canada. The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) described the accusations as “absurd” and “motivated” in a statement.
The MEA issued a formal statement stating, “We have observed and reject the statement of the Canadian Prime Minister in their Parliament, as well as the statement by their Foreign Minister.”
The announcement said, “Allegations of the Indian government’s “involvement in any act of violence in Canada are motivated and baseless.
According to the official statement, the Canadian Prime Minister made similar accusations against our Prime Minister, which he categorically denied.
According to the press release, India has a democratic government that is firmly committed to upholding the law.
Such speculative claims aim to divert attention away from Khalistani terrorists and radicals who have received protection in Canada and are still a danger to India’s territorial integrity. The Canadian government’s silence on this issue has long been a source of worry, it continued.
According to the press release, Canadian government officials have publicly declared their support for such forces, and this continues to be a cause for grave worry.
The press release said that “the space given to a range of illegal activities in Canada, including murder, human trafficking, and organised crime, is not new.”
Any efforts to link such events to the government have been vehemently denied by India.
The MEA urged the Canadian government to take swift and forceful legal action against any anti-Indian groups operating on Canadian territory.
According to CBC News, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Monday claimed that the Indian government was responsible for the shooting death of Khalistan Tiger Force commander Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Canada.
On June 18, Najjar—who was sought in India—was shot and killed in front of a Gurdwara in Surrey, British Columbia.
Nijjar, who was residing in Surrey and came from the Punjabi hamlet of Bharsinghpur in Jalandhar, had been labelled a “absconder” by the National Investigation Agency (NIA).
The Canadian prime minister claimed earlier on Monday during a debate in the Canadian Parliament that Surrey’s Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdwara’s president, a Canadian citizen, had been killed by “agents of the Indian government” because of information available to his country’s national security officials.
According to Trudeau, “Canadian security agencies have been actively pursuing credible allegations of a potential association between Government of India agents and the murder of a Canadian citizen, Hardeep Singh Nijjar.”
He said that it was unacceptable for a foreign person or government to be involved in the murder of a Canadian citizen in Canada.
“Any foreign government’s participation in the murder of a Canadian citizen on Canadian territory is an intolerable breach of our sovereignty. It goes against the basic principles that govern how open, free, and democratic nations operate, continued Trudeau.
He continued by saying that he was working on this with Canadian allies.
“As you would expect, we have been working closely and coordinating with our allies on this very serious matter,” he said. (ANI)
