In the midst of the ongoing political spat between India and Canada that resulted in the two countries packing home one senior diplomat apiece, the Minister of External Affairs, Dr. Jaishankar met the Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the new Parliament House.
Details of the meeting were not immediately available but it is generally believed that Jaishankar had given the Prime Minister an update on the situation.
Political and media reports have not missed the opportunity to see the context of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s accusation that Ottawa had reasons to believe that Indian agents were behind the killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar this June in Vancouver.
The context is reportedly of a weak leader trying to shore up his political standing, especially among the Sikh community, as well as to counter the perception that Trudeau came away with nothing from the recently concluded G 20 meeting, perhaps even snubbed and humiliated.
The Canadian Prime Minister’s charge against India based on allegations and with no concrete evidences were at once rubbished by India as being “absurd and motivated”. In fact the political opposition in Canada are pressuring Trudeau to present the evidence to back up his claims.
Media reports speak of officials of the Five Eyes intelligence alliance (Australia, United States, Canada, Britain and New Zealand) discussing the issue at different times but Ottawa could not get any further by way of a formal discussion at the G 20.
India has long been in serious conversation at high levels with the governments of Britain, Australia and Canada to rein in Sikh separatist movements in their countries, which in the perception of New Delhi was getting out of hand. Extremist elements were seen to be openly inciting violence against Indian diplomats besides targeting properties like embassies and consulates.
New Delhi has consistently refused to buy the argument that the overseas anti-India activities should be seen in the framework of free speech and expression.
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