Tensions between India and Canada have reached a new high following accusation by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau that the Indian government was involved in the murder of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a Sikh separatist, on Canadian soil in June 2023. The diplomatic standoff has resulted in both countries expelling senior diplomats and trading sharp statements, with the potential to further damage already strained relations.
The current Crisis
The current crisis began on October 14, 2024, when Trudeau publicly accused India of making a “fundamental error” by allegedly supporting criminal activities on Canadian soil, including Nijjar’s murder. The accusation is based on intelligence gathered by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), which claims to have evidence linking Indian government agents to the killing. Trudeau asserted that Canada would never tolerate the involvement of a foreign government in threatening and killing its citizens, calling the alleged actions a violation of Canadian sovereignty and international law.
This development followed months of diplomatic tensions between the two nations. Nijjar, who was shot dead outside a Sikh temple in Surrey, British Columbia, had been a prominent advocate for the creation of an independent Sikh homeland, Khalistan, which would be carved out of Indian territory. His death in June 2023 sparked outrage among Canada’s Sikh community and led to a deterioration in India-Canada relations. The Indian government had previously expressed concern about pro-Khalistan activities in Canada, which it views as a threat to its sovereignty.
India expels Canadian commissioner
In response to Canada’s allegations, India’s Ministry of External Affairs dismissed the claims as “preposterous imputations” and suggested that the Canadian government was using the issue to deflect attention from its own domestic political challenges. On October 14, 2024, India expelled Canada’s acting High Commissioner Stewart Wheeler, his deputy, and four first secretaries, following Ottawa’s decision to expel Indian diplomats linked to the incident. The tit-for-tat expulsions have escalated the diplomatic row, leaving the future of bilateral relations uncertain.
India’s actions came after its High Commissioner, Sanjay Kumar Verma, was named as one of the “persons of interest” in connection with the murder of Nijjar. Canada has also accused six Indian officials of engaging in activities that pose a threat to Canadian public safety, including clandestine operations and coercive behaviour targeting South Asian Canadians. According to the RCMP, the alleged actions include other violent acts and homicides, prompting Trudeau to describe India’s involvement as a “criminal campaign.”
Trudeau said he will share the matter with his allies
Trudeau has further escalated the matter by sharing intelligence with Canada’s Five Eyes partners, particularly the United States. He stated that Canada has been working closely with these allies since the summer of 2023, after identifying a similar pattern of behaviour by Indian agents in an attempted extrajudicial killing in the U.S. These revelations have only added to the international scrutiny of India’s role in the growing row.
Series of Incidents
The timeline of events leading to the current crisis reveals a pattern of escalating tensions. Following Nijjar’s murder, Canada suspended talks on a proposed trade agreement with India in September 2023. During a G20 summit in New Delhi, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed concerns to Trudeau about Sikh separatist protests in Canada. By mid-September 2023, Trudeau announced in Parliament that Canada was pursuing credible allegations linking Indian government agents to the murder, triggering a series of retaliatory diplomatic expulsions by both countries.
In the months that followed, India suspended visa services for Canadian citizens and reduced its diplomatic presence in Canada, further straining ties. The situation worsened in October 2023, when thousands of Sikhs gathered at the same gurdwara where Nijjar was killed to vote in an unofficial referendum on Khalistan, intensifying India’s concerns over the movement’s growing influence in Canada.
