India bashes Canada over investigation after Sikh death

Indian officials and Canadian law enforcement on Monday publicly clashed over an investigation following the death of a Sikh activist. Canadian authorities discovered evidence linking the Indian government to homicides and violent criminal activity, Royal Mounted Police Commissioner Michael Duheme said at a Monday news conference. Canada’s investigation into Indian officials stretches beyond the killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, said RCMP Assistant Commissioner Brigette Gauvin. The Indian government insisted that Canadian authorities were conducting a sham investigation intended to smear India’s reputation.

Which Indian officials did Canada say were being investigated? The Indian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that Canadian officials told New Dehli that Indian High Commissioner Sanjay Kumar Verma and several other diplomats were persons of interest in its investigation. The Canadian government on Monday said it was expelling six Indian diplomats because the Indian government failed to waive their diplomatic immunity and allow them to be questioned as part of the RCMP’s investigation. 

India has contempt for Canada’s accusations, it said in a news release. New Dehli specifically criticized Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, saying his rhetoric revealed a bias against India. While speaking to Canada’s House of Commons in September 2023, Trudeau claimed there were credible links between Indian government officials and the alleged murder of Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in British Columbia months earlier.

Are the two governments working on the case together? The Indian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Canada has not shared any evidence in the case. However, Duheme said that Canadian officials have met with Indian government officials to discuss the situation.

What are Canadian law enforcement officials alleging about the Indian government? Indian officials have leveraged their positions to conduct clandestine criminal activity and gather information in Canada, commissioner Duheme said. The Indian government has used that allegedly ill-gotten information to target South Asian individuals in Canada, Duheme said. Those individuals include Sikh activists, Gauvin confirmed.

What are the charges? Canadian authorities also discovered that Indian officials allegedly have connections to an Indian criminal gang involved in drug trafficking and extortion in Canada, Gauvin said. Eight individuals face homicide charges as part of the investigation, and 22 individuals face charges related to incidents of extortion, intimidation, and harassment, Gauvin said. Some of those individuals have connections to the Indian government, Gauvin said.

Dig deeper: Read my report in The Sift about how the U.S. Department of Justice is also charging an Indian national with involvement with crimes that occurred on American soil.