As Canadian PM Mark Carney looks to repair relations with India, a look back at how pandering to Khalistani terrorists by Canada damaged once friendly relations

The India-Canada relations, historically grounded in shared democratic values and economic ties, deteriorated drastically in 2024, when Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau leveled baseless allegations against India regarding the killing of Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar. Now, with Trudeau out of the picture and Mark Carney at the helm, Canada is looking to repair the damage done by Trudeau government.

PM Modi, who attended the G7 summit in Canada at the invitation of Mark Carney, met the Canadian PM in Alberta. During the meeting, they reaffirmed the importance of India-Canada ties, and the need to pursue a constructive and balanced partnership grounded in mutual respect for concerns and sensitivities, strong people-to-people ties, and growing economic complementarities.

The statement issued by New Delhi also added, “In this regard, both sides agreed to take calibrated and constructive steps to restore stability in the relationship, beginning with the early return of High Commissioners to each other’s capitals.”

In a significant development, it was announced by the MEA in its statement that India and Canada “agreed to take calibrated and constructive steps to restore stability in the relationship, beginning with the early return of High Commissioners to each other’s capitals.”

Notably, the leaders underscored the importance of restarting senior ministerial as well as working-level engagements across various domains to rebuild trust and bring momentum to the relationship.

PM Modi and PM Carney discussed opportunities for future collaboration in areas such as clean energy, digital transformation, artificial intelligence, LNG, food security, critical minerals, higher education, mobility, and supply chain resilience. They reaffirmed their shared interest in promoting a free and open Indo-Pacific. The leaders also discussed the importance of restarting the stalled negotiations on the Early Progress Trade Agreement (EPTA), to pave the way for a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA). They agreed to task their respective officials to engage further in this regard.

Since assuming office in March 2025, Mark Carney, has adopted a pragmatic and economy-focused approach in resetting Indo-Canada relations. Unlike former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who mindlessly blamed Indian government for plotting Nijjar’s killing to appease his Khalistani votebank, PM Carney has avoided direct references to the matter. Carney’s invitation to PM Modi for the G7 Summit, was a gesture reflecting the Canadian government’s renewed approach towards India. Despite the previous Trudeau government’s slandering and villainizing of the Indian government, PM Modi accepted the G7 invite, demonstrating India’s intent to start afresh as the Canadian government under a new leader mends its ways.

The Canadian government’s shift in approach towards India can also be attributed to a reduced reliance on pro-Khalistan Jagmeet Singh’s NDP. NDP’s electoral loss has facilitated a conducive domestic political environment for PM Carney to improved ties with India, without having to tackle excessive political pressure from Khalistan sympathisers. However, much like Trudeau, PM Carney has, so far, not done much to curb frequent anti-India demonstrations by Khalistani secessionists and terrorists.

As Indo-Canada ties are undergoing a reset, it is pertinent to take a look back at how Trudeau government’s self-serving support to Khalistani elements and blame game against India damaged once-thriving Indo-Canada ties beyond repair.

Khalistani secessionism, Justin Trudeau and strained Indo-Canada ties

Even before Justin Trudeau became Prime Minister of Canada in 2015, the country has had a past of fostering and shielding Khalistani elements. Justin Trudeau’s father and former Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau had shielded Kanishka bombing mastermind Talwinder Singh Parmar by refusing his extradition to India. Khalistanis have long been using Canadian soil to push their secessionist agenda under various governments, however, none had surrendered before Khalistanis the way Justin Trudeau did.

Notably, while pro-Khalistan Sikhs are a minority in Canada, they hold significant political influence and thus, not only Liberal Party leaders but even Conservatives try not to upset these anti-India elements.

Former Indian High Commissioner Ajay Bisaria had earlier said that Khalistani groups exert a disproportionate influence over Canadian politics. It is this influence that Khalistanis hold because of which Justin Trudeau allowed their anti-India activites, protests, referendums, attacks on Hindu temples and what not, all in the name of freedom of expression and right to protest.

Under Justin Trudeau’s watch, Khalistani separatists vandalised Hindu temples in Surrey, Georgetown, Toronto, Brampton, Vancouver and other areas of Canada, while the police little to nothing to stop this. Khalistani terrorists often deface walls of Hindu temples with Hinduphobic and anti-India slogans.

On 22nd July 2024, extremists defaced the Bochasanwasi Shri Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha (BAPS) Swaminarayan Mandir in Edmonton city in Alberta province of Canada. In the photographs, it could be seen that the wall of the Hindu temple vandalised with Hinduphobic, anti-Modi graffiti.

In September 2023, the Shree Mata Bhameshwari Durga Devi Society in Surrey British Columbia was sprayed with ‘Punjab is not India’ grafitti

In February 2023, a Ram temple in Mississauga was defaced with anti-India graffiti by unknown miscreants.

In January 2023, the Gauri Shankar Mandir was desecrated by Khalistani extremists in Brampton City in Ontario province of Canada. The walls of the temple were defaced with anti-India graffiti by Khalistanis associated allegedly with the banned outfit Sikhs For Justice (SFJ). The vicious slogan of ‘Khalistan Zindabad, Hindustan Murdabad’ was found spray-painted on the outer wall of Gauri Shankar Mandir.

In July 2023, Khalistani groups planned protests outside the Indian High Commission in Ottawa and consulates in Toronto and Vancouver. Back then, India issued a demarche, urging Canada to prevent any harm, however, PM Trudeau defended the protests as exercises of free speech, even if such protests involved violence and challenge to India’s territorial integrity.

In September 2022, some Khalistani terrorists defaced BAPS Swaminarayan Temple in Toronto with anti-India slogans. Several videos circulating on social media showed slogans of ‘Khalistan Zindabad, Hindustan Murdabad’ painted on the walls of the temple.

In February 2022 alone, six Hindu temples were attacked in Toronto.

Besides Hindu temples, the Khalistani fanatics have also targeted Indian High Commission and diplomats, and even then, the Trudeau government did not take any action against them even as the Indian authorities raised serious concerns.

In 2023, Khalistanis launched an attack on the Indian High Commission in Canada. They also hurled a grenade prompting the Special Cell to register an FIR under the UAPA and the Explosive Act in this instance.

At the time when Indian authorities launched a crackdown on pro-Khalistan leader Amritpal Singh, a dinner reception for High Commissioner of India to Canada Sanjay Kumar Verma in Surrey, British Columbia, on March 20, had to be cancelled due to violent protests by Khalistanis. Back then, OpIndia reported how an Indian-origin journalist Sameer Kaushal was “pushed and threatened” by the Khalistanis protesting.

Despite India registering strong protest, the Trudeau government took no action against the attackers and only gave hollow assurances to the Indian government.

On several occasions, the Canadian authorities refused to provide security to Indian officials for organising consular camps. In November 2024, India High Commission in Toronto cancelled its planned consular camps after the local authorities failed to ensure the security of the Indian diaspora from Khalistani protestors.

While not much has changed on ground in Canada even after Carney assumed office, under Trudeau, not a day passed without Khalistani terrroists raising anti-India slogans, performing mock killings of former Indian PM Indira Gandhi, current Prime Minister Naendra Modi, desecrating Indian flags and raising anti-Hindu slogans. Trudeau government, however, allowed the anti-India activities as Trudeau was afraid of upsetting his Khalistani vote bank even if that meant straining ties with India.

From farcical referendums on Khalistan, to parades depicting the 1984 assassination of Indira Gandhi by her Sikh bodyguards, Canada allowed perpetual disrespect of former and current Indian prime ministers, Indian diplomats, and the Hindu community.

Whenever India condemned Trudeau government’s complicity in rising Khalistani activities in Canada, Trudeau would defend his government’s permissiveness by invoking Canada’s Charter of Rights and Freedoms, freedom of speech and assembly. Trudeau’s backing of Khalistani elements, even if for political gains, amounted for interference in India’s internal matters and further inflamed tensions with India.

What further worsened the situation was the kiling of Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in possibly gang-related violence. Tensions between India and Canada escalated after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau alleged in Parliament last year that there were “credible allegations” of India’s involvement in the killing. India, however, firmly denied all such allegations, labeling them as “absurd” and “motivated,” while accusing Canada of providing a haven for extremist and anti-India elements.

Justin Trudeau launched his fresh attack against Indian diplomats and the Modi government, accusing them of being ‘persons of interest’ and being involved in criminal activities against Canadian citizens [read Khalistanis]. India rejected the allegations and called them “preposterous imputations” and part of the Trudeau government’s political agenda.

India recalled its High Commissioner to Canada following which the Trudeau government asked 6 Indian diplomats to leave the country. In a reciprocal move, New Delhi expelled 6 Canadian Canadian diplomats, asking them to leave the country before 20th October.

In an accidental moment of truth, Trudeau admitted last year that they had no evidence before accusing the Indian government of involvement in the killing of Khalistani extremist Hardeep Singh Nijjar. In an interview, Trudeau said that they had no proof to pinpoint the killing of Nijjar to India when they had first accused New Delhi of orchestrating the assassination on Canadian soil.

While the Trudeau government claimed that it does not pander to Khalistani elements, designated Khalistani terrorist and SFJ chief Gurpatwant Singh Pannun admitted to being in contact with Justin Trudeau’s office for the last three years and having shared information with them.

The desperation to deflect the attention of the Canadian people from allegations of Chinese interference in the last two federal elections in Canada as well as to appease the Khalistani votebank, particularly since Trudeau had grown highly unpopular among the public for a plethora of reasons, had reduced PM Trudeau and his government into clowns making a mockery of themselves at a global level.

Trudeau’s support for Nijjar, who fraudulently stayed in Canada, and indulged in anti-India activities, ran terror camps, attracted backlash from Canadian people as well, Trudeau opted to strain bilateral ties with India over baseless claims to consolidate anti-India votebank. Although eventually things went to a point that his own party decided to get rid of him and forced him to resign.

Justin Trudeau’s explicit backing of the Khalistani terrorists drove the India-Canada bilateral to the rock bottom. From allying with pro-Khalistan leader Jagmeet Singh’s NDP to mollycoddling Khalistani extremists, Trudeau desperately tried to appease his anti-India vote bank while also deflecting domestic failures.

While Prime Minister Mark Carney’s stance towards India seems positive, and might help restore normalcy in Indo-Canada ties, absolute resolution of disputes is impossible until Canada stops allowing Khalistani extremists to carry out anti-India activities. Be it referendums or protests involving stomping on Indian flags and raising anti-Hindu slogans, or threatening attacks against India. Canada needs to extradite wanted Khalistani terrorists to India, crack down on hate speech and anti-India and anti-Hindu elements. It is only when Canada curbs Khalistani terrorism that the two countries can rebuild trust and bolster ties.

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