India requests that Canada remove its 41 ambassadors
By October 10th, India has instructed Canada to return 41 diplomats, according to a story in the Financial Times on Tuesday.
Relationships between New Delhi and Ottawa have taken a significant hit as a result of Canadian suspicions that operatives of the Indian government were involved in the assassination of Canadian citizen and leader of the Sikh separatist movement, Hardeep Singh Nijjar, in June in India. India had designated Nijjar as a “terrorist” and had accused Canada of harboring him.
Nijjar, 45, promoted the establishment of Khalistan, a Sikh state, and served as president of the Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdwara temple in Surrey, British Columbia.
The accusation has been rejected by India as ludicrous.
On September 21, Trudeau urged India to assist in the inquiry into the killing of the separatist leader in British Columbia and declared that Canada will withhold its supporting documentation.
On the same day that Canada’s new visas were canceled, India requested that Ottawa scale back its diplomatic representation there.
Last week, the Indian foreign minister discussed Canadian claims that New Delhi may have been involved in the execution of the separatist leader in Canada with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan.
According to Jaishankar, New Delhi has informed Canada that it was willing to investigate whatever “specific” or “relevant” facts the country provided on the killing.
Trudeau claimed he had discussed the “credible allegations” with India “many weeks ago” but has failed to provide any proof in public.
According to sources aware with the Indian demand, the Financial Times reported that India has threatened to strip the diplomatic immunity of any diplomats who refused to depart after October 10.
India had requested a reduction of 41 of Canada’s 62 diplomats there, according to the publication.
Requests for feedback from the foreign ministries of Canada and India were not immediately fulfilled.
The presence of Sikh separatist organizations in Canada has irked New Delhi, and Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar had claimed that there was a “climate of violence” and a “atmosphere of intimidation” against Indian officials there.
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