India and Canada are experiencing a very tense relationship. India said it has pulled back its top diplomat from Canada after learning that he and other officials were labeled as “persons of interest” in a murder case involving a Sikh leader.
This all began when Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau suggested that India might be involved in the killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a Sikh separatist, in Canada in 2023.
India strongly denied the claims, calling them ridiculous, and said there was no proof provided by Canada to back up the allegations.
Because of this, ties between the two nations worsened. India asked Canada to remove many of its diplomats and even stopped visa services for Canadians.
Now, India has announced it will withdraw its ambassador and other diplomats from Canada because they don’t trust that the Canadian government will protect them.
Nijjar, who supported the idea of a separate homeland for Sikhs, was shot and killed outside a Sikh temple in British Columbia.
Canada called the murder a “targeted attack,” and Trudeau said it was a violation of Canada’s sovereignty, meaning it was an attack on the country’s independence.
The tensions seemed to ease when India began giving out visas again in October 2023, but last week, Canada’s Foreign Minister, Mélanie Joly, admitted that the relationship with India is still very difficult and warned that there could be more attacks like Nijjar’s in the future.
BBC has reported on these events, giving insights into how the situation is unfolding between the two countries.
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/clyle3py4nko