New York. India has challenged Canada to provide evidence that India was involved in the killing of a Sikh separatist leader and has asked Canada for information in this regard.
Also, New Delhi has made it clear that India is ready to proceed with the investigation based on any specific information provided by Canada regarding the murder of Hardeep Singh Nijjar.
India’s Foreign Minister S Jaishankar, who is in New York to participate in the 78th General Assembly of the United Nations, said that India is open to discussing Nijjar’s killing in a program held on Tuesday.
Recently, the relationship between Ottawa and New Delhi has soured after Canada said that it has ‘reliable information’ that Bharti was involved in the Nijjar murder and is investigating it. Relations have become so bitter that the two countries have taken decisions ranging from expelling diplomatic staff to denying visas.
India has dismissed Canada’s credible information as baseless. Informing that the Indian government has told Canada that it is open to investigating any relevant allegations regarding the murder, External Affairs Minister Jaishankar reiterated that Delhi had no role in it. He also challenged Canada to present evidence that India was involved in Nijjar murder.
Hardeep Singh Nijjar was shot dead outside a temple in British Columbia last June. He was declared a terrorist by India in 2020. However, his supporters have been denying it.
The Indian government has been objecting to the anti-India activities of separatists in Western countries, including protests demanding Khalistan or a separate Sikh homeland.
In the 1980s, a violent rebellion centered in the Sikh-dominated state of Punjab took the form of the Khalistan movement. Even though this movement has not stopped in India, Sikhs from countries like Canada, Australia and Britain have been doing anti-India activities from time to time.RSS