Canada accuses Indian minister Amit Shah of conspiring against Sikh separatists – ThePrint –

Author: Kanishka Singh
(Reuters) – The Canadian government said on Tuesday that Indian Home Affairs Minister Amit Shah, a close ally of Hindu nationalist Prime Minister Narendra Modi, was behind plots against Sikh separatists on Canadian soil.

The Indian government dismissed Canada’s earlier accusations as baseless, denying any involvement.

The Washington Post first reported that Canadian officials say Shah is behind a campaign of violence and intimidation against Sikh separatists in Canada.

Canada’s deputy foreign minister, David Morrison, told a parliamentary committee on Tuesday that he told the American newspaper that Shah was behind the plots.

“A journalist called me and asked if he (Shah) is that person. I have confirmed that it was this person,” Morrison told the committee without providing further details or evidence. The Indian High Commission in Ottawa and India’s Ministry of External Affairs have yet to comment.

India has called Sikh separatists “terrorists” and threats to its security. Sikh separatists are demanding India carve out an independent homeland known as Khalistan. Insurgency in India in the 1980s and 1990s killed tens of thousands of people.

This period included the anti-Sikh riots of 1984, which left thousands dead after then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi was assassinated by her Sikh bodyguards after she ordered security forces to storm the holiest Sikh temple to drive out Sikh separatists.

In mid-October, Canada expelled Indian diplomats, linking them to the 2023 killing of Sikh separatist leader Hardeep Singh Nijar on Canadian soil. India also ordered the expulsion of Canadian diplomats.

The Canadian case is not the only case of alleged Indian attacks on Sikh separatists on foreign soil.

Washington has indicted former Indian intelligence officer Vikash Yadav for allegedly leading a malicious plot to kill Sikh separatist leader Gurpatwant Singh Pannoon, a dual US-Canadian citizen and Indian critic in New York.

The FBI warned against such retaliation against a US resident. India has said little publicly since announcing in November 2023 a formal investigation into the US allegations.

The allegations have tested Washington and Ottawa’s relationship with India, which the West often views as a counterweight to China.

(Reporting by Kanishka Singh in Washington; Editing by Richard Chang)

Disclaimer: This report was automatically generated by Reuters News Service. ThePrint is not responsible for its content.