India Calls for Withdraw of at Least 41 Canadian Diplomats as Ties Worsen

India reportedly requested that Canada remove some of its ambassadors. Canada currently has 62 diplomats in India, and New Delhi has asked the number to be reduced by 41. The move comes over the diplomatic crisis after the killing of Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar. Earlier, Canadian PM Justin Trudeau accused India of being involved in Nijjar’s killing. Indian External Affairs Minister Jaishankar says Canada has become a haven for terrorists.

India tells Canada to remove 41 of its 62 diplomats in the country

India has asked Canada to reduce its diplomatic presence in the latest escalation in the tensions between the two countries. India has told Canada that it must repatriate dozens of its diplomats by next week. The Prime Minister was asked about this before heading into cabinet this morning; here’s what he said: “Obviously, we’re going through an extremely challenging time with India right now, but that’s why it’s so important for us to have diplomats on the ground working with the Indian government there to support Canadians and Canadian families. We’re taking this extremely seriously, but we’re going to continue to engage responsibly and constructively within the government of India.”

Let’s go now to CTV Scott Hurst; he’s following the story and joins me now with more. “Marcia, as you just mentioned, the latest escalation in tension between these two countries, and we saw that strained relationship on full display at a meeting during the recent G20 Summit between the two leaders of India and Canada. Now, India has asked Canada to reduce its diplomatic presence. We’re tracking this latest report coming out of the Financial Times this morning. As you just heard, the Prime Minister commented on this just a short time ago, saying this is a challenging time with India right now, but they are continuing to work through the process to support Canadians in that country.”

“Now, India has told Canada it must repatriate 41 diplomats by October 10th. Ties between Canada and India have taken a significant hit in recent weeks. The Prime Minister told Parliament last month that India was allegedly behind the death of a Sikh activist in British Columbia, an allegation India has dismissed. The PM says there were credible allegations of Indian involvement in the slaying of Hardip Singh Nar, a 45-year-old Sikh leader who was killed by a gunman in June in Siri BC, just outside of Vancouver.

For years, India has said Nar, a Canadian citizen born in India, has links to terrorism, an allegation Nar had denied. So, Marcia, there is quite some urgency to this latest report. The October 10th deadline is just one week from now. Canada currently has 62 diplomats in India, so that is quite a significant chunk of Canada’s presence in that country. We’ll continue to track the latest developments and reactions coming out of Ottawa and bring that to you as soon as that reaction comes out of Ottawa. All right, Scott, thanks for that, CTV’s Scott Hurst.”

India Calls for Withdrawal of at Least 41 Canadian Diplomats as Ties Worsen

We want justice for millions of Canadians. As I said on Monday, there are credible reasons to believe that agents of the government of India were involved in the killing of a Canadian on Canadian soil, which is something of the utmost and foundational importance in a country of rule of law. In a world where the international rules-based order matters, we have a rigorous and independent justice system and robust processes that will follow their course.

When we told the Canadians that this is not the government of India’s policy, we also told them that if you have something specific, if you have something relevant, let us know. We are open to looking at it. But to understand the context of it, in a way, because the picture is not complete without the context, in a way, you also have to appreciate Ken that in the last few years, Canada has actually seen a lot of organized crime. This is related to secessionist forces, organized crime, violence, and extremism—they’re all very deeply mixed up. In fact, we have been talking about specifics and information. We have actually been badgering the Canadians. We’ve given them a lot of information about organized crime leadership which operates out of Canada.

There are a large number of extradition requests, and there are terrorist leaders who have been identified.

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