New Delhi: Amidst the ongoing diplomatic turmoil between India and Canada, Congress Member of Parliament (MP) Ravneet Singh Bittu has drawn a stark parallel, likening Ottawa’s current stance to that of Pakistan in bygone times. In a candid conversation with ANI, the seasoned Congress leader disclosed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has offered reassurances regarding the welfare of Indian students in Canada. “I had a discussion with PM Modi in Parliament yesterday, and he assured me that they would take care of it,” revealed Ravaneet Singh. “Canada has taken on a role reminiscent of Pakistan’s past,” he added, alluding to the escalating tensions in the bilateral relationship.
The recent strain in India-Canada relations took a contentious turn when Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau made a startling accusation on Monday. Trudeau implicated the Indian government in the fatal shooting of Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar. Notably, Nijjar was a designated terrorist in India and met his demise outside a Gurdwara, in a parking area in Surrey, British Columbia, on June 18.
During a spirited debate in the Canadian Parliament, Mr. Trudeau asserted that his country’s national security officials had substantial grounds to believe that “agents of the Indian government” were responsible for the assassination of the Canadian citizen, who also held the presidency of Surrey’s Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdwara. These grave allegations, however, met with a swift and unequivocal denial from the Ministry of External Affairs in India, which categorically dismissed them as both absurd and baseless.
“We have seen and reject the statement of the Canadian Prime Minister in their Parliament, as also the statement by their Foreign Minister. Allegations of the Government of India’s involvement in any act of violence in Canada are absurd and motivated,” declared the official statement from the Indian authorities.
In a notable revelation, Ravaneet Singh underscored Nijjar’s troubling background, emphasizing that the designated terrorist had direct involvement with the assailants who had assassinated his grandfather. “Hardeep Singh Nijjar was the right-hand man of the killers who assassinated my grandfather. He arrived there in 1993 and obtained citizenship…Nijjar and his associates are among the top 10 most wanted gangsters and drug peddlers,” he disclosed, shedding light on the complexity of the situation.
This ongoing diplomatic standoff, fueled by allegations and counter-allegations, continues to cast a shadow over the once harmonious relationship between India and Canada. The situation remains fluid, with both nations closely monitoring developments, in hopes of restoring diplomatic equilibrium.