The sensational allegations made by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on the alleged involvement of Indian authorities in the killing of Khalistan separatist terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar made international headlines. Funnily, the words used by Trudeau were credible allegations rather than evidence that would have added some heft to the grandiose announcements. Indian leadership was not only dismissive of those allegations but also derided the Canadian leadership for failing to produce credible and substantive evidence to buttress claims. Astonishingly, the United States of America too sided with the Canadian assertion but without nudging the latter to produce evidence to back those claims. Did someone mention double standards at play? You bet.
PC: TOI
Now, we all know how the global diplomatic, economic, and geostrategic compulsions guide the governments on matters of importance. This calls for a definitive skill that could put any diplomatic efforts to a real test. Indian diplomacy is encountering one such challenging time but the way the External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar handled those is worthy of applause. Jaishankar is spot on when he mentioned that what is happening in Canada cannot be normalized and the intimidation, threats, and violence against Indian diplomats need to be called out. No country, including Western democracies, would tolerate vandalism of their embassies and posters being put up exhorting violence against specific diplomats. This must stop at once.
Yet, these are precisely the things the Indian mission in Canada has had to put up with, despite repeated complaints to Canadian authorities. Note that Canada’s Khalistan connection is not new, notwithstanding Justin Trudeau’s recent allegation. In fact, it was the previous UPA government that had denied a visa to Canadian politician and Trudeau ally Jagmeet Singh in 2013 over the latter’s Khalistani connections. Further, the former Canadian PM Stephen Harper also said that he did not see advocacy for a Sikh homeland in Punjab as a crime. So, Canada has a history of pandering to Khalistanis. The reality is extremist Sikhs in Canada have come to wield disproportionate influence over the Canadian political system.
PC: Business Standard
Why? Because they are well organized, control important gurdwara finances, and can mobilise support for their favoured candidates. This is why Khalistanis in Canada have been given a long rope for years. But New Delhi should stand firm and tell Ottawa that it can’t be business as usual as long as these extremist elements are given free rein. Trudeau says he still wants good ties with India. But that’s like China saying it wants to mend fences with India despite encroaching on Indian territory and blatantly indulging in sporadic skirmishes with the posted personnel along the LAC. Needless to mention, New Delhi must largely freeze out Ottawa and refuse to restart trade talks even if the latter offers. Let’s stand our ground on this till Ottwa relents.
