New Delhi: Calling the Canadian police probe into the killing of Khalistani separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar “tainted”, Indian envoy to Ottawa Sanjay Kumar Verma urged the Justin Trudeau government to release evidence backing its allegation of India’s involvement in the case.
Verma, the High Commissioner of India to Canada made the remarks during an interview with The Globe and Mail, a Canadian newspaper.
“You are talking about illegal wiretaps and talking about evidence. Conversations between two diplomats are secure by all international law,” Verma is quoted by The Globe and Mail as saying.
“There is no specific or relevant information provided in this case for us to assist them in the investigation,” he said.
Verma added: “Where is the evidence? Where is the conclusion of the investigation? I would go a step further and say now the investigation has already been tainted. A direction has come from someone at a high level to say India or Indian agents are behind it.”
Verma’s interview comes at a time when relations between Canada and India are going through a “difficult phase”, as described by External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar.
On 18 September, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau claimed that his government was investigating “credible allegations” of a “potential link” between agents of the government of India and the killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar.
New Delhi rejected Trudeau’s allegations, calling them “absurd and motivated”. Nijjar, a Sikh extremist and designated terrorist in India, was shot dead by unidentified assailants outside a gurdwara in Surrey, British Columbia on 18 June.
The two countries have also expelled each other’s diplomats.
Ottawa withdrew 41 diplomats and their dependents from India on 19 October, after New Delhi sought ‘parity’ in terms of diplomatic presence between the two countries, as reported by ThePrint earlier.
India resumed the issuance of some visas only on 26 October, nearly a month of suspending services due to threats faced by Indian diplomats in the country as reported by ThePrint.
Also read: Canada has double standards against terror outfits. India and West don’t have to follow it
‘Conversations between diplomats protected by international law’
In his interview to The Globe and Mail, Verma denied any link between India and the killing of Nijjar. He also highlighted that any conversations between diplomats are protected under international law and cannot be used as evidence in the courts.
This is in reference to reports that the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) have recorded conversations between Indian diplomats, while also receiving “human” and “signals” intelligence from an unnamed Five Eyes partner country, as reported by ThePrint earlier.
Five Eyes is an intelligence alliance consisting of the US, the UK, Australia, New Zealand and Canada.
Verma added that India has sent 26 extradition requests to Ottawa in the past five-odd years, to have people extradited to New Delhi from Canada — requests that India is still waiting for Ottawa to take action on.
‘God forbid if something happens’
The High Commissioner pointed out that he was being protected by the Royal Canadian Mountain Police (RCMP), owing to the security threats he faces in Canada.
“I am concerned about my safety and security. I am concerned about the safety and security of my consul generals. God forbid if something happens,” Verma is quoted as saying by The Globe and Mail.
The High Commissioner’s office provided The Globe and Mail photos of posters attacking him and other Indian consuls general in Vancouver and Toronto, circulating on social media and posted publicly in those two cities.
The posters include statements, such as calling the Indian diplomats as “enemies of Canada” or offering bounties for their assassination, The Globe and Mail reported.
To repair diplomatic ties, Verma highlighted that New Delhi expects Ottawa to rein in Sikh extremist supporters. “Don’t allow your soil to be used by a group of Canadian citizens who want to dismember India,” he is quoted as saying.
However, Verma still pushed for negotiations to resume over the stalled trade deal between Ottawa and New Delhi, stating that India “would like” to return to the negotiating table.
(This is an updated version of the report)
(Edited by Poulomi Banerjee)
Also read: Indian students in Canada disenchanted, helpless. New Delhi must spread pre-migration awareness