By: Mahita Saikia and C. Shraddha
The authors are second-year bachelor’s and first-year master's students, respectively, at the Jindal School of International Affairs. They can be reached at 23jsia-mahita@jgu.edu.in and 24jsia-cshraddha@jgu.edu.in
Image Source: Associated Press
Introduction
Canada, in an explicit statement, has accused Indian government agents of being involved in serious criminal allegations, a claim that India strongly denies, and proceeded to expel six Indian diplomats, including the High Commissioner on Monday, October 14, 2024. A long-simmering friction between Canada and India has been reignited, with Canadian allegations of Indian involvement in extinguishing pro-Khalistan extremism among the Indian diaspora in Canada. Relations between New Delhi and Ottawa degrade with the Canadian Government’s claim of ‘investigating a link’ between the Indian Government agents and the infamous assassination of the Sikh Separatist Leader, Hardeep Singh Nijjar, on the Canadian west coast in June 2023. However, tensions between both countries date long before this recent diplomatic spat. India and Canada share an overarching relationship on a multifarious front of issues.
Historical timeline of relationship turmoil
Canada and India have shared bilateral relationships since the latter half of the 19th century. Both countries continue to be members of the Commonwealth of Nations and are a part of the Group of Twenty (G20). India also shares a major chunk of its diaspora with Canada. The population of Indian immigrants in Canada has eventually grown to currently constitute around 40% of the international student community. After Indian Independence in 1947, relations with Canada were considered a bridge between South Asian India and the Western World. The 1951 Colombo Plan started and subsequently increased Canadian foreign aid to India. However, the bombing of Air India Flight 182 by Canadian Sikh terrorists in June 1985 built significant friction between the two countries. After the introduction of economic liberalisation policies in India in the 1990s, it attracted Canadian trade relations and businessmen back to India. However, the relations were short-lived, as Canada moved to impose further sanctions on India on its second nuclear tests in May 1998, as it did for India’s first nuclear tests as well in 1974.
While New Delhi and Ottawa have had an extensive relationship, delving into recent history, their relations come to be strained by Separatist leaders of the Khalistan Movement. Although necessarily dormant in India itself, Sikh separatism is largely viewed as a threat by the Indian Government on grounds of secessionist extremism. During Justin Trudeau’s visit to India in February 2018, he aimed to smoothen relations with India after brewing tensions over the issue of Canadian support for the Khalistan movement. The controversy however sparked off when Jaspal Singh Atwal, whose Sikh separatist group Canada explicitly considered a ‘terrorist’ organisation, was invited to Trudeau’s dinner with the High Commissioner in New Delhi. Subsequently, in December 2020, Trudeau angered India by commenting on the violent farmer’s protest that his country would “always be there to defend the rights of peaceful protest” (Shamim, 2024).
That same year, the Indian Government assigned the status of a ‘terrorist’ to the infamous Sikh Separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar, who met with his assassination in June 2023. Nijjar’s assassination thus furthered friction between both countries, which escalated in September 2023 when Ottawa expelled an Indian diplomat on grounds of involvement in this homicide. India retaliated by expelling a Canadian diplomat the same year. Ottawa, in due course, was reported to have arrested three suspects, and later four, in May 2024 in an ongoing investigation into Nijjar’s killing. An unavoidable statement made by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police’s (RCMP) Superintendent succeeding the arrests plunges us onto the recent developments of Monday. “This investigation does not end here. We are aware that others may have played a role in this homicide, and we remain dedicated to finding and arresting each one of these individuals,” remarked RCMP Superintendent Mandeep Mooker.” (Shamim, 2024).
Current status
The already fragile diplomatic ties between India and Canada hit new lows when the Indian External Affairs ministry received a diplomatic wire from Canada alleging the role of the Indian High Commissioner, Sanjay Verma, in the killing of pro-Khalistan leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar. While the government of India dismissed these claims as "ludicrous", Sanjay Verma and other Indian diplomats are named as "persons of interest" in the ongoing Canadian investigation. The RCMP has alleged the involvement of the Indian government in orchestrating homicide, extortions and planned attacks to repress the separatist movements that amplified after the death of Nijjar last year. In a press conference, RCMP's assistant commissioner alleged the use of organised crime elements and named the "Bishnoi group" as a possible co-conspirator.
Following such allegations, Canada expelled six Indian diplomats, including India's High Commissioner. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau defended his government's decision in a press conference by claiming that the government has "clear and compelling evidence that agents of the government of India have engaged in and continue to engage in activities that pose a significant threat to public safety". He reiterated his stance by claiming that the activities undertaken by the Government of India involved gathering information through the use of coercion and threats of violence, distinctly targeting South Asian Canadians.
In retaliation, India expelled six Canadian diplomats on 14th October 2024, including the Acting High Commissioner, Mr Stewart Ross Wheeler, and instructed them to leave the Indian territory by 19th October 2024.
Conclusion and Future Implications
With new allegations unfolding against India and Canada, scholars are unable to reach a common consensus on the shared future of both countries. While some experts have predicted a fallout on bilateral trade and the imposition of sanctions on India by Canada, the officials tell a different story. Canadian Trade Minister Mary Ng gave a statement reinforcing the government's intention to protect the interests of Canadian business owners, reassuring the maintenance of the existing financial ties between the two countries. With more than 600 Canadian companies marking their presence in the key sectors of the Indian economy, Indian officials are not worried about Canada pulling out their investment. According to reports, India is not concerned with Canada severing bilateral economic ties due to the relatively minimal volume of trade that takes place between the two.
With Canadian elections fast approaching, the country's Foreign Interference Commission (FIC) has pointed fingers at India as one of the foreign actors that influenced the 2019 and 2021 Canadian federal general elections. This statement by the FIC was followed by remarks by PM Trudeau, who stated that India made a “horrific mistake” by thinking that it could infringe on Canadian sovereignty and safety. This ongoing rift has caused grave uncertainty for visa applicants, particularly students. The disintegration of diplomatic ties may create a hurdle during visa processing and approval, causing further discomfort for ordinary citizens. The future of the students abroad now hangs by a thread, dependent on the moves of the diplomats.
References
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