The Justin Trudeau government has refuted making any statement that linked the top Indian leadership to the Nijjar murder case, a day after a Canadian media report asserted that Prime Minister Narendra Modi, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar and National Security Advisor Ajit Doval were aware of an alleged plot to murder Khalistani separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar.
According to a Globe and Mail news report, Canadian security officials think PM Modi was aware of Nijjar’s murder, citing an unnamed senior national security official. India said such “ludicrous statements” should be treated with the contempt they deserve. The Canadian government has now described it as “speculative and inaccurate” and stated that it is “not aware of any evidence” that PM Modi was aware of any such serious criminal activity.
The PM’s National Security and Intelligence Advisor, Nathalie G. Drouin, signed a statement from Canada’s Privy Council that said, “On October 14, because of a significant and ongoing threat to public safety, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) and officials took the extraordinary step of making public accusations of serious criminal activity in Canada perpetrated by agents of the Government of India. The Government of Canada has not stated, nor is it aware of evidence, linking Prime Minister Modi, Minister Jaishankar, or NSA Doval to the serious criminal activity within Canada”.
The Globe and Mail report stated, “According to a senior national security official who worked on the intelligence assessment of New Delhi’s foreign-interference operations in Canada, Canadian security agencies believe Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India knew about the killing Sikh separatist leader in British Colombia and other violent plots”. Additionally, the newspaper reported that Union Home Minister Amit Shah was linked to the assassination operations by both American and Canadian intelligence. According to the unnamed official, Doval and Jaishankar were also aware of the situation.
On Thursday, in response to the report, Randhir Jaiswal, a spokesperson for the External Affairs Ministry, said, “We do not normally comment on media reports. However, such ludicrous statements made to a newspaper purportedly by a Canadian government source should be dismissed with the contempt they deserve”.
Last month, Canada had alleged that Amit Shah “organized a campaign of violence, intimidation, and intelligence operations aimed at Sikh separatists” working within Canada. The accusations came from the deputy foreign affairs minister, David Morrison, who told the parliamentary committee that he was the one who verified Shah’s identity to The Washington Post. India strongly objected to the grave accusations made by the minister against Shah and had called a representative from the Canadian High Commission.
Jaiswal stated, “Our actions included summoning the Canadian High Commission representative yesterday, where we delivered a diplomatic note concerning the proceedings of the Standing Committee on Public Safety and National Security in Ottawa, dated October 29, 2024”.
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