new delhi –
India on Saturday formally protested the Canadian government’s claims that the country’s powerful interior minister, Amit Shah, had ordered targeting of Sikh activists in Canada, calling them “absurd and baseless.”
Relations between the two countries soured last year after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said there was credible suspicion that the Indian government was involved in the assassination of Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Canada. India vehemently rejected the accusations.
New Delhi has long been concerned about Sikh separatist groups, accusing Canada of allowing separatists to break free from a once-strong movement to create an independent Sikh homeland known as Khalistan in India. The government is increasingly condemned.
The diplomatic spat led to the expulsion of each other’s diplomats last month.
“The Government of India objects in the strongest terms to the absurd and baseless references against the Union Home Minister,” Randhir Jaiswal, a spokesperson for India’s Ministry of External Affairs, told reporters on Saturday.
Jaiswal also said Canadian diplomats in New Delhi were called on Friday and handed over a letter formally protesting the allegations. “Such irresponsible actions will have serious consequences for bilateral relations,” he warned.
Canada’s Deputy Foreign Minister David Morrison told MPs on the National Security Committee on Tuesday that he had confirmed Shah’s name to the Washington Post, which first reported the allegations. Mr Morrison did not explain how Canada knew of Mr Shah’s alleged involvement.
Canadian authorities have repeatedly said they have shared evidence with India, and government officials deny any evidence has been provided. New Delhi has called the allegations ridiculous.
Nijjar was a local leader of the Khalistan movement, which is banned in India. India designated him a terrorist in 2020 and at the time of his death was seeking his arrest for his alleged involvement in attacks on Hindu priests in India. He lived for nearly 30 years in Canada, where about 2% of the population is Sikh.
Shah, 60, is home minister and is responsible for India’s internal security. He is widely considered to be India’s second most powerful politician after Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Mr. Shah has also been a close ally of Mr. Modi for decades.
Canada is not the only country to accuse Indian officials of plotting assassinations abroad. In mid-October, the U.S. Department of Justice announced criminal charges against Indian government officials in connection with an alleged botched plot to kill a Sikh separatist leader in New York City.
Vikash Yadav, who authorities say led the New York plot from India, was killed in a murder that prosecutors previously announced was planned ahead of a series of other politically motivated killings in the U.S. and Canada. He is charged with murder-for-hire for the premeditated murder.
New Delhi expressed concern at the time and said India takes the allegations seriously.