Canada-India ties could take a long time to recover
Associated PressOct 17
Canada and India Trade Barbs as Diplomatic Row Widens
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Above: Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau (L) and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrive for a meeting at Hyderabad House in New Delhi on Feb. 23, 2018. Image copyright: Money Sharmer/AFP/Contributor via Getty Images
The Facts
The row between Canada and India has deepened this week as the countries traded fresh barbs over the 2023 killing of a Sikh separatist leader on Canadian soil.
On Wednesday, speaking at a public inquiry into foreign interference in Canadian politics, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau accused India of making a "massive mistake," doubling down on his country's allegation that Indian agents had a part to play in the murder of Hardeep Singh Nijjar in June 2023.
The Spin
Pro-establishment narrative
Canada wished to handle this in a responsible way. Still, in that process, India made a big mistake in thinking that the Canadian government could allow violence on its citizens and violations of its sovereign territory to go unpunished. Rather than work with Canada, the Indian government's approach was to question Canada's democracy.
Establishment-critical narrative
As Trudeau himself admitted, he made these outlandish accusations without hard evidence, but on the back of intelligence reports he is unable to produce. How can India cooperate if Canada cannot share evidence behind its claims?
