Sikh MPs open up about allegations of India’s involvement in murder

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OTTAWA — NDP leader Jagmeet Singh says he has spent most of his life wondering whether the Indian government might target Sikhs like him who share his beliefs.

“I grew up hearing about many stories that if you raise concerns about human rights violations in India, that you may be denied a visa, that if you return to India, you may suffer violence, torture and even death,” he said, following news of India’s alleged role in the killing of a BC Sikh leader.

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“But to hear the Prime Minister of Canada confirm a potential link between the killing of a Canadian citizen on Canadian soil by a foreign government is something I never imagined.”

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced Monday that Canadian intelligence agencies have credible information that Indian government agents were involved in the killing of Sikh leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar, who was shot dead in Surrey. BC, on June 18.

While this comes as no surprise to Canada’s Sikh community, elected officials in the Canadian Parliament who are also part of this community have long been targets of India.

Indian officials have accused current Emergency Preparedness Minister Harjit Sajjan and former members of Trudeau’s cabinet of sympathizing with the Sikh separatist cause. Sajjan denied these allegations and was forced to deny them again on Tuesday.

“I served my country in the military, I’m a policeman and you can imagine the scrutiny you’re going through,” he told reporters before a cabinet meeting.

Sajjan added that foreign powers peddling misinformation in an attempt to destroy people’s reputations is something that all Canadians need to be concerned about, and something that our community and other communities have been thinking about for a long time” .

Singh wrote a letter to the commissioner in charge of the public inquiry into foreign interference, Marie-Josée Hogue, to ask her to include an examination of India in particular.

“As I write this letter, I know that there are Canadians who live in fear for their lives due to threats from foreign governments, such as India,” he wrote. “The news that Canadians are not safe in their own country gives your work a new urgency.”

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Sajjan said the federal government cannot share much information because it needs to protect the integrity of the investigation but said the revelation of possible Indian involvement should give all Canadians confidence that their intelligence agencies are on top of the situation.

“My strong message to them is that all of our agencies are doing everything they can — not just in the short term, we’re focused on the long term — to make sure that not only our security agencies have all the appropriate resources but also… the appropriate information.”

Public Safety Minister Dominic LeBlanc indicated that the RCMP has been elaborating plans with other police forces to protect communities and individuals from potential threats for several weeks, as the federal police that the news will eventually go public.

MPs will hold an emergency debate in the House of Commons on Tuesday night to address the stunning revelation made by Trudeau, and it is further expected that elected officials from the Sikh community will share their experiences with the public. .

Earlier in the day, Treasury Board President Anita Anand, who is of Indian origin, called on all Canadians to remain empathetic, united and calm in the wake of the news.

“It’s a very difficult time to hear the Prime Minister make the comments that he made, especially for families who come from India,” he said. “And I would say that I think that sentiment is shared by South Asians and families of Indian origin, regardless of religion.”

Anand also called on Canadians to “let the legal process proceed as it should and be prudent in that regard.”

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