Visa services for Canadians suspended as row over Sikhs intensifies
Relations between India and Canada have hit an all-time low after Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau suggested that India might be behind the murder of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a Canadian citizen who promoted the establishment of an independent Khalistan. The crisis has put the United States in a tough spot given India’s importance as a US ally in the Indo-Pacific region.
Ottawa (AsiaNews/Agencies) – The diplomatic spat between India and Canada rose by a notch today in the wake Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s statement on Monday suggesting that the Indian government may be involved in the murder of a Sikh separatist.
BLS, an outsourcing service provider for Indian government and diplomatic missions, announced that it was suspending visa services for Canadians until further notice for "operational reasons".
India's foreign ministry declined to comment on the matter, saying interested parties should refer to the BLS’s website.
Relations between the two countries, which have been strained for some time, are now at an all-time low.
On Monday, Prime Minister Trudeau said Canadian intelligence agencies were investigating whether “agents of the Indian government” were involved in the murder last June of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a Canadian citizen designated as a terrorist by India in 2020 for promoting an independent Sikh state, Khalistan, to be carved out of Indian and Pakistani Punjab.
Nijjar was killed outside the temple he led in the city of Surrey, British Columbia; the two hitmen who shot him have not been identified.
Yesterday India issued an advisory to its citizens travelling or living in Canada to "exercise utmost caution" due to " growing anti-India activities and politically condoned hate crimes”, a reference to Sikh activism, which has a wide audience in Canada.
Last year, Sikhs for Justice (SFJ), an association banned in India since 2019, organised a referendum for Khalistan. Deemed a secessionist threat, India asked Canada to stop and speak out against it.
The Khalistan independence movement emerged in the 1970s after a long history of political militancy. It has included a phase of armed struggle and has seen a revival recently, in particular after India arrested self-styled preacher Amritpal Singh.
Canada has 1.4 million people of Indian origin, 3.7 per cent of the country's population, according to the 2021 census. The North American country is also home to the largest Sikh community outside India, at around 780,000.
Aside from English and French, Punjabi is the most widely spoken language.
The crisis in Indo-Canadian relations spells trouble for US President Joe Biden, who must try to keep the two allies together.
John F. Kirby, a spokesman for the president’s National Security Council, said that the US administration is “deeply concerned” about the allegations, adding “that the perpetrators of this attack need to be brought to justice.”
Stressing US ties with India, he noted that “our relationship with India remains vitally important not only for the South Asian region but, of course, for the Indo-Pacific”.
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