Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney has said he needs to be “careful” about pro-Khalistani Sikh separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar's killing as there is a judicial process underway in the case.
Carney was asked if he spoke to Prime Minister Narendra Modi during their talks on Tuesday on the sidelines of the G7 Summit about the killing of a Nijjar on the country's soil.
“We have had a discussion, the prime minister and I, about the importance of having the law enforcement to law enforcement… cooperation directly, the importance of addressing transnational repression, as I noted including when we met,” he said.
“And obviously there is a judicial process that's underway and I need to be careful about further commentary,” Carney said.
The ties between India and Canada were strained after the then prime minister Justin Trudeau's allegations in September 2023 of a “potential” involvement of Indian agents in Nijjar’s killing outside a gurdwara in Surrey city on June 18, 2023.
India, which had designated Nijjar as a terrorist in 2020, had strongly rejected Trudeau's allegations as “absurd” and “motivated.” In April 2024, Trudeau asserted that his government stood up to defend the rights and freedoms of all Canadians. He was testifying at a high-profile public inquiry looking into foreign interference in Canada’s electoral process.
India had accused the Trudeau government of allowing pro-Khalistani elements to operate from Canadian soil.
In October 2024, India recalled its high commissioner and five other diplomats after Ottawa attempted to link them to Nijjar's killing. India also expelled an equal number of Canadian diplomats.
Carney, an economist and political newcomer, took charge as Canada's new prime minister in March this year following Trudeau's exit from the top office.
New Delhi had then said it hoped to rebuild ties with Canada.
After Prime Minister Modi and his Canadian counterpart Carney had a “very positive and constructive meeting” on the sidelines of the G7 Summit here in Kananaskis on Tuesday, India and Canada have agreed to restore High Commissioners to each other's capitals at an early date.
It was amongst the first in “calibrated steps” to restore stability to the “very important relationship” between the two countries, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri said.
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