Tensions between India and Canada have escalated as the Indian government has demanded the withdrawal of approximately 40 Canadian diplomats from the country by October 10, according to reports by the Financial Times. This move follows a strained diplomatic relationship between the two nations.
Canada currently has 62 diplomats stationed in India, and India has conveyed its request for a reduction by 41 diplomats, as reported by the newspaper. The demand for the withdrawal of Canadian diplomats marks the latest development in an ongoing dispute between the two countries.
The rift between New Delhi and Ottawa reached a nadir when Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau alleged that the Indian government might be involved in the killing of Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar. Nijjar, a designated terrorist in India, was fatally shot in a parking lot outside a Gurdwara in Surrey, British Columbia, Canada, on June 18.
During a debate in the Canadian Parliament, Trudeau claimed that Canada’s national security officials had reason to believe that “agents of the Indian government” were responsible for Nijjar’s killing. Nijjar also served as the president of Surrey’s Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdwara.
India categorically denied these allegations, dismissing them as “absurd” and “motivated.” The Indian government asserted that Canada had not provided any public evidence to support the claims surrounding Nijjar’s death.
External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar recently commented on the longstanding issues between India and Canada, attributing them to the Canadian government’s perceived leniency towards terrorism, extremism, and violence within the country. Jaishankar emphasized that the current situation should not be labeled a “deadlock” and indicated that India remained open to examining any specific and relevant information shared by the Canadian side regarding the matter.
The demand for the reduction of Canadian diplomats in India underscores the continuing strain in diplomatic relations between the two nations, the need for resolution and open dialogue to address their differences effectively.
Read Now:Tragedy Strikes Maharashtra’s Nanded Hospital: 24 Deaths in 24 Hours Spark Outcry
