As pressure mounts on Canada over its allegations of India's “possible” involvement in the killing of Khalistani separatist leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said that evidence for the same was shared with New Delhi “weeks ago”.
According to a Reuters report, Trudeau said: "Canada has shared the credible allegations that I talked about on Monday with India. We did that many weeks ago.” Addressing a news conference in Ottawa on Friday, Trudeau added that Canada hopes India will engage with them to “get to the bottom of this very serious matter."
Trudeau's fresh statement comes after media reports indicated that the Canadian government was in possession of intelligence linking Indian agents to the murder of Nijjar in British Columbia in June. According to the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC), the evidence includes communications between Indian officials and diplomats working in Canada.
The Canadian government has gathered "both human and signals intelligence in a months-long investigation", said a report by CBC News. The evidence was not solely gathered by Canada—crucial intelligence was provided by an unnamed ally in the Five Eyes intelligence alliance. So far, Canada has not released any public evidence to back its claims that India angrily rejected as “absurd”.
US extends support to probe
With the diplomatic row between India and Canada reaching a historic high, the United States, too, said it is deeply concerned about Trudeau's allegations. “We've been consulting throughout very closely with our Canadian colleagues, not just consulting, coordinating on this issue. And from our perspective, it is critical that the Canadian investigation proceeds,” US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Friday.
Blinken said the US was in touch with both countries and called on India to cooperate with Canada. "We want to see accountability. And it's important that the investigation run its course and lead to that result."
The US had earlier expressed support for Canada's investigation efforts and reiterated that no country can get any "special exemption" for such kind of activities.
Nijjar's family responds
Nijjar, 45, who became a Candain citizen in 2007, was designated as a terrorist by India in 2020. Speaking to the Toronto-based CBC News, Nijjar's son Balraj Singh Nijjar said that he felt sense of a relief after Trudeau accused the Indian government of being involved in the killing. Balraj added that the Nijjar family always suspected India's involvement in his father's killing.
