Trudeau says Indian government linked to murder of Sikh leader in B.C.
OTTAWA – Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Monday that Canada has credible information that the Indian government agents were involved in the murder of a Canadian citizen in Surrey, B.C. earlier this year.
Hardeep Singh Nijjar was shot on June 18 outside a Sikh temple in Surrey. He was a prominent Sikh leader and backed the establishment of a separate state, called Khalistan, for Sikhs in India
Ng postpones ‘Team Canada’ trade mission to India amid strained relations
OTTAWA – Canada is postponing a trade mission to India that federal Trade Minister Mary Ng had promoted as key to the Indo-Pacific strategy.
Ng’s office has not explained why the trip, which was scheduled to start Oct. 9, has been postponed.
If Canada-India bilateral relations were in the deep freeze after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s gaffe-ridden visit to India in 2018, following last weekend’s G20 summit in New Delhi, they are now officially in the Arctic tundra. The G20 was a perfect opportunity for Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to reset the relationship. But it was not to be.
Justin Trudeau’s first trip to India as prime minister in 2018 was a complete disaster, including inviting a convicted terrorist to dinner. On this latest trip for the G20, he looked back at his last trip and said, “Hold my beer.”
For the second time in his tenure, an official trip to India by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has become defined by a cascading series of gaffes, snubs and diplomatic embarrassments.
Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe’s government is accusing Prime Minister Justin Trudeau of damaging relations with India and keeping the provinces in the dark about trade talks.
In a letter Moe released Monday, Saskatchewan Trade Minister Jeremy Harrison argues Trudeau is picking a fight with India for domestic political gain and risking access to one of his province’s most important export markets.
Harrison claims the province learned that Canada paused trade talks with India through media reports, and that Trade Minister Mary Ng had not replied to a late July letter seeking an update on the negotiations.
Trudeau has also come under severe attack by the Canadian opposition and policymakers for his “woke agenda” on issues around gender and freedom of speech.
There are doers and there are talkers, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s character qualifies as that of a talker reading his own eulogy. This much is clear from the global media coverage, including Canadian media, of Trudeau’s G20 participation which was a disaster in itself.
TORONTO – Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi conveyed strong concerns about protests in Canada against India to Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on the sidelines of the G20 summit in New Delhi, according a statement by India.
New Delhi has been long sensitive to Sikh protesters in Canada. In June, India criticized Canada for allowing a float in a parade depicting the 1984 assassination of Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi by her bodyguards, perceived to be glorification of violence by Sikh separatists.
U.S.-based group Sikhs for Justice is mobilizing members of its diaspora to vote in what it describes as a referendum, including one scheduled in Surrey, B.C., on Sunday to create an independent Sikh homeland in northern India called Khalistan.
The vote has been on a world tour since 2021 with more events planned to tap into separatist sentiments in the Sikh diaspora.
Organizers have conducted votes in London, Melbourne, Rome, Geneva and in Ontario, which attracted thousands of people in Brampton last year, and thousands in Mississauga this July. The group’s ultimate goal is to hold a vote in Punjab in 2025.
The welfare of children has long been a concern in India. Aware of this need, the founding fathers of independent India in 1949 wrote a Constitution that prohibits employing children under the age of 14 in factories and other hazardous work (Article 24).
India’s Parliament has also tried to safeguard children’s rights by passing legislation . The Child and Adolescent Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act of 1986 makes employing a child a criminal offence.[1] Parliament has also enacted other laws to prohibit, identify and prosecute child labour.
Homicide investigators say a third suspect was involved in the slaying of a Sikh leader outside a Surrey gurdwara in June.
The third suspect was seen in a silver 2000 Toyota Camry that was waiting on 121 Street for the other two suspects, the Integrated Homicide Investigation Team announced at a news conference Wednesday.
Investigators had previously said they believed the two suspects met a getaway car after killing Hardeep Singh Nijjar on June 18.
Canada Temple Vandalised By Khalistan Supporters, 4th Incident This Year
New Delhi: A temple in Canada was vandalised allegedly by Khalistani supporters on Saturday night, triggering outrage among the Indian community.
Officials said “pro-Khalistan” posters were put up on the walls and the gate of the Lakshmi Narayan Mandir, in Surrey – one of the oldest temples in British Columbia.
The posters called for Canada to investigate India’s “role” in the death of Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar on June 18.
In July, violent jihad– holy war in the service of Islam – reached two groups of Hindus in South Asia. The first attack involved the destruction of the religious heritage of Hindus in Pakistan. The other attack, in India, consisted of an Islamist raid on a Hindu pilgrimage. The assault killed at least six people and injured dozens.
“The viral video captures the harrowing ordeal endured by two Christian women from Manipur. On May 4, 2023, the women were paraded naked while a mob of men molested and beat them mercilessly. Tragically, the younger woman, aged only 19, was brutally gang-raped by the enraged mob, which included members of the Meitei [Hindu] tribe. To add to the horror, four police officers reportedly stood by and watched as the frenzied attack unfolded, making no attempt to intervene.
Ottawa says law enforcement is “engaged” after a video circulating online appeared to threaten Indian diplomats in Canada.
Public Safety Canada said in a Tuesday tweet that Ottawa will ensure the safety of all diplomats in Canada, but the department would not provide details.
It referred queries to the RCMP, which refused to confirm whether it had opened a criminal probe or say which particular video was involved.
