OTTAWA – Canada has deported the Indian High Commissioner and five envoys after the Canadian National Police revealed they have evidence linking members of the Indian government to multiple murders and other violent acts on Canadian soil.
In response, India said it was withdrawing its top diplomat in Canada and announced plans to expel six Canadian diplomats.
The RCMP said it does not normally release such information while investigations are ongoing, but this poses a “significant threat to public safety” in the country, particularly to members of the Khalistan political movement, with more than a dozen “ credible, imminent” threats. to people’s lives.
“We felt it was imperative to confront the government of India and inform the public about some very serious findings uncovered by our investigation,” Mike Duheme, commissioner of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, said at a press conference on Monday .
“Indian diplomats and consular officials based in Canada used their official positions to carry out clandestine activities such as gathering information for the Indian government either directly or through their proxies,” he said.
However, RCMP provided few details about these violent acts, diplomatic involvement in criminal acts and threats to life and public safety.
India’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Monday that Canadian Acting High Commissioner Stewart Ross Wheeler, Deputy High Commissioner Patrick Hebert and four other diplomats must leave the country by October 19 at 11:59 p.m.
The State Department statement said India “reserves the right to take further steps in response to the Trudeau government’s support for extremism, violence and separatism against India.”
Deputy Commissioner Mark Flynn had recently tried and failed to meet with top Indian law enforcement officials to present evidence about Indian government agents involved in serious criminal activity.
Last fall, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau shocked the nation when he revealed in Parliament that Canada had found evidence that agents from India may have been involved in the killing of Sikh Khalistani activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar, who was shot near a gurdwara in Surrey in June 2023. British Columbia.
Bilateral relations gained momentum and although tensions began to ease, they never really recovered and have now reached new lows due to foreign interference.
Foreign Minister Mélanie Joly said on Monday that the decision to expel the diplomats was based on “sufficient, clear and concrete evidence” identifying six people of interest to the Nijjar case.
The activities of Khalistani activists in Canada have long been a concern for Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Duheme said that in recent years, police have charged a significant number of people involved in murders and other criminal acts, such as extortion. He said the government had held internal discussions about lifting diplomatic immunity so police could interview officials believed to be involved, but they “failed to do so.”
Duheme also said police have found evidence of Indian interference in Canada’s democratic processes.
