Minister of external affairs, S Jaishankar
The minister of external affairs, S Jaishankar, stated that while Canada has openly accused “Indian agents” of killing Khalistani separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar, they have not provided any evidence against them. However, India has not ruled out conducting an investigation. ‘How a Billion People See the World’ was the title of the minister’s London talk with journalist Lionel Barber. In the midst of Canada’s current diplomatic standoff with India, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau of Canada stated this week that while his country does not wish to fight India, everyone on the planet will be at greater risk if larger nations can break international law without facing repercussions.
Canadian politics giving space to separatism…
On the issue, Jaishankar said, “We feel that Canadian politics has given space to violent and extreme political opinions which advocate separatism from India, including through violent means. These people have been accommodated in Canadian politics. They are given the freedom to articulate their views.”
When the high commission came under attack and the ambassadors were publicly threatened, the Canadian government did nothing. Referring to the bombing of an Air India flight, Jaishankar called Canada a nation with a past and stated, “We are a democracy, they are a democracy. Freedom of speech and freedom of expression also comes with a certain responsibility. The misuse of those freedoms and the toleration of that misuse for political purposes would be very wrong…”
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Was Nijjar Singh a terrorist?
“Regarding Trudeau, I have discussed it with my counterpart — I still do — we told them look, if you have a reason to make such an allegation, please share the evidence with us. We are not ruling out an investigation and looking at anything which they may have to offer. They haven’t done so,” Jaishankar said.
In response to a query on whether Jaishankar thought Hardeep Singh Nijjar was a terrorist, the foreign minister stated, “He has a track record which is there in the social media. That track record is a pretty graphic one. I would leave everybody to make their judgement. He held public positions.”
Around forty Canadian diplomats were evacuated from India amid the India-Canada spat, following New Delhi’s complaint about an imbalance in the number of diplomats. Canada was the country with the most diplomats in India, and New Delhi accused them of meddling in domestic matters.
