India summons Canadian diplomat after Ottawa's move against envoy

India on Monday (October 14) summoned Canadian diplomat Stewart Wheeler after Ottawa, through a diplomatic communication, suggested the Indian High Commissioner and other diplomats are “persons of interest” in an investigation.

India described the “imputations” as “preposterous”. India now reserves the right to take steps in response to the Canadian government's efforts to "concoct allegations" against Indian diplomats, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said in a strongly-worded statement.

This development is likely to further strain the relations between India and Canada.

"We have received a diplomatic communication from Canada yesterday suggesting that the Indian High Commissioner and other diplomats are 'persons of interest' in a matter related to an investigation in that country," MEA added.

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'Vote bank politics'

"The government of India strongly rejects these preposterous imputations and ascribes them to the political agenda of the Trudeau government that is centered around vote bank politics," the MEA said.

The "aspersions" cast on the Indian high commissioner by the government of Canada are "ludicrous" and "deserve to be treated with contempt", it said.

"India now reserves the right to take further steps in response to these latest efforts of the Canadian government to concoct allegations against Indian diplomats," it added.

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 Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar's killing. New Delhi rejected Trudeau's charges as "absurd".

Pro-Khalistan elements

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

In its statement on Monday, the MEA said, "Since Prime Minister Trudeau made certain allegations in September 2023, the Canadian government has not shared a shred of evidence with the government of India, despite many requests from our side." This latest step follows interactions that have again witnessed assertions without any facts, it said.

"This leaves little doubt that on the pretext of an investigation, there is a deliberate strategy of smearing India for political gains," the ministry said.

Prime Minister Trudeau's "hostility to India has long been in evidence". His visit to India in 2018, which was "aimed at currying favour with a vote bank, rebounded to his discomfort", the statement said.

‘Espousing separatist cause’

"His Cabinet has included individuals who have openly associated with an extremist and separatist agenda regarding India. His naked interference in Indian internal politics in December 2020 showed how far he was willing to go in this regard," it said.

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That his government was dependent on a political party whose leader "openly espouses a separatist ideology vis-a-vis India" only aggravated matters, it added.

"Under criticism for turning a blind eye to foreign interference in Canadian politics, his government has deliberately brought in India in an attempt to mitigate the damage," the ministry said.

"This latest development targeting Indian diplomats is now the next step in that direction. It is no coincidence that it takes place as Prime Minister Trudeau is to depose before a commission on foreign interference. It also serves the anti-India separatist agenda that the Trudeau government has constantly pandered to for narrow political gains," it said.

‘Intimidating’ diplomats

To that end, the Trudeau government has "consciously provided space to violent extremists and terrorists to harass, threaten and intimidate Indian diplomats and community leaders in Canada", the statement said.

This has included "death threats" to them and to Indian leaders. All these activities have been "justified" in the name of freedom of speech, it said.

Some individuals who have entered Canada illegally have been fast-tracked for citizenship. Multiple extradition requests from the government of India in respect of terrorists and organised crime leaders living in Canada have been disregarded, the MEA said.

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High Commissioner Sanjay Kumar Verma is India's senior most serving diplomat with a distinguished career spanning 36 years. He has been an ambassador in Japan and Sudan, while also serving in Italy, Turkiye, Vietnam and China, the ministry asserted.

The government of India has taken cognisance of the activities of the Canadian High Commission in India that serve the political agenda of the current regime. This led to the implementation of the principle of reciprocity in regard to diplomatic representation, it said.

(With agency inputs)