The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) on Monday warned the public of a series of crimes, including homicides, extortion and coercion, that it attributes to agents of the Indian government.
RCMP and other Canadian officials presented evidence to India over the weekend, but say New Delhi has refused to cooperate with police investigations.
Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly said this is why Canada declared the six diplomats persona non grata, which is one of the harshest sanctions Canada can impose under the Vienna Convention.
India insists it has received no evidence of any government involvement in crimes in Canada. She in turn ordered six Canadian diplomats to leave.
The diplomatic row made the front pages of the Times of India as well as the Indian Express.
The vice-president of research at the Asia-Pacific Foundation, Vina Nadjibulla, will be particularly watching how Canada’s allies will react to this “unprecedented and extraordinary” news.
This could result in behind-the-scenes diplomatic moves and perhaps public statements of support for Canada.
“The reaction of the United States will be the one that everyone will pay attention to,” she argued.
“For Canada, at this point, to get any form of cooperation from India and get accountability for what happened, India would have to feel some pressure. India should have a reason to cooperate,” she said.
According to Ms. Nadjibulla, it was unprecedented to see Ms. Joly accuse current diplomats of being involved in criminal activities and to learn that violence linked to the Indian government had only increased since Canada made its concerns public , last year.
In September 2023, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced that Canadian intelligence services were investigating “credible” information regarding a “potential link” between the Indian government and the murder of Sikh leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar in British Columbia.
In Ms. Nadjibulla’s opinion, Ottawa has now “very clearly and confidently” made its case by sending certain senior officials over the weekend to present evidence to their Indian counterparts.
“Canada did what it thought was necessary,” she said. We are in uncharted territory, with implications for diplomatic relations as well as Canadian public and national security.”
Ms. Nadjibulla also recalled that it is rare for diplomats to be expelled in the wake of accusations related to crime.
“We are not dealing here with a rogue state, we are dealing here with a very important international actor,” she mentioned.
New Democratic Party Leader Jagmeet Singh will speak to the media Tuesday morning to respond to the latest developments. His party called for sanctions and demanded that Canada bar entry to its territory to a Hindu group that Canadian Sikhs and Muslims accuse of spreading hatred.
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