Canadian government denies evidence linking Indian leaders to crimes in Canada

Canada’s senior security advisor to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has dismissed claims that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, or National Security Adviser Ajit Doval were linked to criminal activities committed by Indian agents in Canada.

Nathalie Drouin issued a statement on Friday, describing reports connecting the three officials to illegal actions as “speculative and inaccurate.”

“On October 14th, because of a significant and ongoing threat to public safety, the RCMP and officials took the extraordinary step of making public accusations of serious criminal activity in Canada perpetrated by agents of the Government of India,” Drouin said.

“The Government of Canada has not stated, nor is it aware of evidence, linking Prime Minister Modi, Minister Jaishankar, or NSA Doval to the serious criminal activity within Canada. Any suggestion to the contrary is both speculative and inaccurate.”

Her remarks were in response to a November 19 article in The Globe and Mail, which, citing an unnamed senior national security official, alleged that Modi, Jaishankar, and Doval had knowledge of crimes and intimidation targeting Sikh separatists by Indian agents in Canada.

Indian officials have also dismissed the report. Randhir Jaiswal, spokesperson for India’s Ministry of External Affairs, called the allegations “ludicrous.” Speaking to The Indian Express, Jaiswal said, “We do not normally comment on media reports.

However, such ludicrous statements made to a newspaper purportedly by a Canadian government source should be dismissed with the contempt they deserve.”

The accusations come amid heightened tensions between the two countries, following Prime Minister Trudeau’s statement earlier this year that there was credible evidence of Indian agents’ involvement in the June 2023 killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a Canadian-Sikh separatist. The incident has strained diplomatic ties, with India strongly denying any involvement.