Canada accuses India of being involved in the assassination of a Sikh independence leader

Ottawa has ordered the expulsion of an Indian diplomat

MADRID, 18 Sep. (EUROPA PRESS) -

The Prime Minister of Canada, Justin Trudeau, stated this Monday that there are "credible accusations" coming from the Canadian security forces and that point to the involvement of the Indian authorities in the assassination of the Sikh leader, Hardeep Singh Nijjar, who had Canadian citizenship.

"Canadian security agencies have been actively investigating credible allegations of a possible relationship between agents of the Government of India and the murder of a Canadian citizen, Hardeep Singh Nijjar," Trudeau explained in a speech in the House of Commons collected by the public channel CBC.

"The involvement of a foreign government in the murder of a Canadian citizen on Canadian soil is an unacceptable violation of our sovereignty. It is contrary to the fundamental norms that govern free, open and democratic societies," he added.

Trudeau has announced that "as you can expect," Canada "has been working closely and coordinating with our allies regarding this serious issue."

In addition, he has called on the Indian Government to participate in the investigation and "collaborate with Canada to get to the bottom of this matter." In that sense, he has highlighted that there are Indian-Canadians who are "furious" and "perhaps afraid."

Trudeau has also revealed that he discussed this issue last week in New Delhi with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, taking advantage of the G20 summit held in this city.

Meanwhile, the Canadian Foreign Minister, Mélanie Joly, has announced that she has ordered the expulsion of "a senior Indian diplomatic official", specifically the head of the Research and Analysis Section (RAW) in Canada, the Indian secret services abroad. "It is clear what I expect. I hope that India will fully collaborate with us and get to the bottom of all this," she stressed.

Public Safety Minister Dominic LeBlanc explained that the Royal Canadian Mounted Police is in charge of the investigation. "We are going to hold those responsible accountable and bring them to justice," he stressed.

Nijjar was shot outside a Sikh temple in Surrey, British Columbia, on June 18. He was also the leader of the Khalistan Tiger Force, an independence group that aspires to independence from the historic Sikh Empire in Khalistan and which had prepared attacks in the province of Punjab.

The Khalistan region includes the Indian provinces of Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Chandigarh, Delhi, and parts of Kashmir and Rajasthan. India had requested Nijjar's extradition from Canada in 2016, but he then denied all allegations.