The Canadian government on Friday denied linking Prime Minister Narendra Modi, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, and National Security Adviser Ajit Doval to criminal activities in Canada.
The statement comes after Canadian newspaper The Globe and Mail claimed that PM Modi was aware of an alleged plot to assassinate Sikh separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar.
The report was dismissed by India as a “smear campaign” labelling the claims as “ludicrous statements” deserving outright rejection.
“We do not normally comment on media reports. However, such ludicrous statements made to a newspaper purportedly by a Canadian government source should be dismissed with the contempt they deserve,” said External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal.
Government of Canada issues a statement – “On October 14th, because of a significant and ongoing threat to public safety, the RCMP and officials took the extraordinary step of making public accusations of serious criminal activity in Canada perpetrated by agents of the Government… pic.twitter.com/OWNHBaMdx3
— ANI (@ANI) November 22, 2024
On Friday, the Justin Trudeau government released a statement stating it is not aware of evidence linking PM Modi, Jaishankar, or NSA Doval to criminal activities in Canada.
“On October 14th, because of a significant and ongoing threat to public safety, the RCMP and officials took the extraordinary step of making public accusations of serious criminal activity in Canada perpetrated by agents of the Government of India,” the statement read.
“The Government of Canada has not stated, nor is it aware of the evidence, linking Prime Minister Modi, Minister Jaishankar, or NSA Doval to the serious criminal activity within Canada. Any suggestion to the contrary is both speculative and inaccurate,” it added.
The statement comes amid strained diplomatic ties between India and Canada. Last year, Trudeau claimed that he has “credible allegations” of India’s involvement in the killing of Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar on Canadian soil.
Earlier, India recalled six diplomats after they were declared “persons of interest” by the Canadian government in the probe linked to Nijjar’s killing.
