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The Canadian government on Friday (November 22, 2024) clarified that it is “not aware” of evidence linking Prime Minister Narendra Modi, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar and National Security Adviser Ajit Doval with the June 2023 murder of pro-Khalistan activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar.
The clarification came a day after a Canadian news report based on disclosure from a national security official in Ottawa had linked the murder with the top Indian leadership saying that the killing of Mr. Nijjar was green-lighted by Home Minister Amit Shah with the support of Mr. Jaishankar, Mr. Doval and Prime Minister Modi.
However, the statement on Friday from Nathalie G. Drouin, Deputy Clerk of the Privy Council and National Security and Intelligence Advisor to the Prime Minister described the information in the report as “speculative and inaccurate” adding, “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 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.
India had reacted angrily to the Canadian news report terming it a smear campaign and calling it “ludicrous”. “Smear campaigns like this only further damage our already strained ties,” Official Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal had said. Canada-India relations had been strained over the past year especially because of Ottawa’s accusation that Indian agents were behind the killing of Mr Nijjar in Surrey, British Columbia.
On 29 October Canada’s Deputy Foreign Minister David Morrison had ‘confirmed’ to the parliamentary committee on public safety and national security in Ottawa that Home Minister Amit Shah had ordered the attacks against pro-Khalistan activists on Canadian soil that led to the murder of Mr Nijjar. He accused Home Minister Shah of being the brain behind the campaign of violence and intimidation against Canadian citizens. The accusation was denied strongly by India
Published – November 22, 2024 12:41 pm IST
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