‘Finding ghost when none exists’: Former Indian diplomats on Canada’s charges

NEW DELHI — Several former diplomats on Tuesday pooh-poohed Canada’s allegation linking Indian diplomats in Ottawa to a probe into the killing of Sikh extremist Hardeep Singh Nijjar, and said New Delhi has taken the “right step in retaliation”.

Former ambassadors also suggested that Ottawa’s “false propaganda” stems from Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s “desperation” to garner “support from radical elements” within his country to shore up his chances in the next elections.

The already frosty India-Canada ties witnessed a massive slide on Monday after Ottawa linked the Indian high commissioner to a probe into the killing of Nijjar. New Delhi dismissed Ottawa’s allegations and responded strongly to the charges, expelling six Canadian diplomats and withdrawing the high commissioner from Canada.

Also read: UK PM Keir Starmer flags ‘importance of rule of law’ in India-Canada row

India also trashed Canadian authorities’ attempts to link Indian agents with criminal gangs in Canada with official sources even saying that Ottawa’s assertion that it shared evidence with New Delhi in the Nijjar case was simply not true.

Former diplomat and author Rajiv Dogra said Canada’s latest action comes as Trudeau’s rating has “gone down” and he is “likely to lose” the upcoming elections there.

“He (Trudeau) is finding ghost where none exists. So, he has now come up with a new propaganda… in anticipation of getting support of Sikh extremists,” he alleged.

Trudeau thinking of an “imaginary accusation is most unfortunate, most unstatesman-like”, he said, adding this is “not a wise way” of approaching things.

VIDEO | "During the last one year, the Canadian PM, Justin Trudeau has made two allegations against India, directly towards PM Modi. First was regarding the Hardeep Singh Nijjar case, which was in last September, and this time it is much more serious one, he has also indicated… pic.twitter.com/AqBEq5aRwi

— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) October 15, 2024

Asked if this will impact India’s stand at a Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit scheduled to be held in Islamabad on October 16, Dogra said, “It won’t”.

“Whether it is SCO or any other forum, India has its own status, and position, and foolish acts from Canada’s side will not impact it,” he told PTI Videos here.

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar arrived in Pakistan on Tuesday for the SCO meeting being hosted by the neighbouring country.

Asked about the impact of the India-Canada diplomatic row on bilateral ties, Dogra said, “Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has sort of become a misfortune for Canadian people. And, his rating has gone down, and the more it dips, he gets agitated and utters wrong things.”

“This is not what I am saying, but a section of media and politicians of Canada saying,” he said.

And in that series, a “foolish thing” has been done regarding the Indian high commissioner and many other envoys, the former diplomat said, and asked if Trudeau thought of the implications.

“This false propaganda, will it not embolden extremist activities there?” he asked.

Dogra said Trudeau will not last longer as a prime minister and he is likely to “lose in the upcoming elections”.

Some former diplomats said this move will be “damaging Canada” when it comes to international opinion.

Former diplomat Dilip Sinha said India has taken the “most important step” in its response.

Diplomacy runs on “reciprocity” and if Canada decides on making “wild allegations and make life unsafe for Indian diplomats” in that country, then India has to “retaliate”.

Sinha, a former ambassador to Greece, said India has already taken “the most important step of retaliating against the extremely irresponsible act of the Canadian government of making wild allegations against the Indian High Commissioner and other senior Indian diplomats working in Canada”.

He said India expelling the acting high commissioner of Canada and five other diplomats was a “reciprocal action”.

Sinha echoed Dogra and said Trudeau is “trailing in opinion polls, so he thinks he is going to lose”.

“He thinks that he needs the support of radical Khalistani elements who have a very strong, forceful base in Canada,” Sinha alleged.

He is bent upon sacrificing the relationship with India to woo these elements, he charged.

Asked if Canada’s position as a member of the G7 grouping will impact India, the former diplomat said, Canada is an important country of the bloc but “other countries will not fall for Trudeau’s ploy” though Ottawa will try to garner support from others.

Brig Rahul Bhonsle (retd) told PTI Videos in Dehradun that Canada’s allegation is “quite preposterous”.

Indian diplomats are well-respected and highly professional. They work for enhancing relations and never for disrupting ties, he said, adding, the MEA rightly rejected Canada’s accusations.

There is no doubt some internal challenges that Trudeau is facing so he is trying to “gain their support”, he said.

“This move… an act of desperation to spoil relationship with India, for what reason I don’t know, but mostly it seems for a political reason… as his party is on the losing ground ahead of the elections,” he claimed.

The relations between the two countries came under severe strain following Trudeau’s allegations in September last year of a “potential” involvement of Indian agents in Nijjar’s killing.

New Delhi rejected Trudeau’s charges as “absurd”.

India has been maintaining that the main issue between the two countries is Canada giving space to pro-Khalistan elements operating from its soil with impunity.

Nijjar, who was declared a terrorist by India, was shot dead outside a gurdwara in Surrey, British Columbia, on June 18 last year.