Relations between India and Canada have recently fallen to a freezing point after both sides expelled each other's top diplomats. The trigger for this turmoil turned out to be the alleged assassination of a Sikh leader in Canada by India**.
The Sikh leader, Hadeep Singh Nijjar, is a supporter of the Sikh separatist movement Khalistan in the northwestern Indian state of Punjab. He had been involved in armed activities in India before fleeing to Canada and becoming a Canadian citizen. He served as a religious leader at a Sikh cultural center in Surrey County, British Columbia, Canada, and was a key figure in the local Sikh community.
Sikhism is a religion of Indian origin, and its adherents are mainly concentrated in Punjab, which makes up 58% of the state's population, while Hindus make up 39%. The conflict between Sikhs and Hindus dates back hundreds of years, when Sikhs built a powerful kingdom against the invasion of the Mughal Empire and British colonizers. However, after India's independence, the political status and economic interests of the Sikhs were suppressed by the Hindus, who began a movement aimed at creating an independent state called "Khalistan".
The movement culminated in 1984 when Sikh separatist forces seized the Sikh shrine of the Golden Temple in Punjab, triggering a strong reaction from India**. The then Prime Minister of India, Indira Gandhi, ordered the army to attack the Golden Temple, causing a large number of **. The incident fueled Sikh hatred, leading to the assassination of Indira Gandhi by two Sikh bodyguards in October of the same year. India then brutally cracked down on Sikh separatist groups in Punjab and elsewhere, resulting in thousands of deaths and tens of thousands.
This bloody conflict has brought the Sikh Kalistan separatist movement to a temporary low point, and many leaders and activists have fled overseas, especially in Canada, the United Kingdom, the United States, Australia and other countries. They continue to engage in separatist activities in these countries, although they are not as large and influential as before, but they still cause a lot of problems for India**. India** regards the Khalistan movement as a threat and has classified several related groups as terrorist organizations, closely monitoring and cracking down on them.
Among these overseas countries, Canada has one of the largest communities of Indian origin, with 1.4 million people of Indian ancestry, and of those 1.4 million, 770,000 are Sikhs, equivalent to 10% of the Sikhs in India. Many of these Sikhs are engaged in politics, business, law, education, and other fields, and some have even held senior positions in Canada, such as former Defense Minister Hajit Sajan and the leader of the opposition New Democratic Party, Manmohan Singh.
These Sikhs played a very important role in the political life of Canada. Last year, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau needed support from the opposition party to stay in power because the ruling Liberal Party did not have a majority of seats in Canada's House of Representatives. At this time, the Liberal Party reached a cooperation agreement with the New Democratic Party, which will support them in power until 2025. This means that Trudeau needs to please these Sikhs in order to maintain his political position.
Therefore, Trudeau has often turned a blind eye to Sikh anti-India and anti-Modi activities in Canada. Although he assured the Indian side in 2018 that the Canadian side does not support any movement to separate India, he has also repeatedly stated that he supports the right to freedom of expression and peace. This is an ambiguous signal to the Sikhs that you can oppose India in Canada, but we will not openly support you and we will not interfere with you.
Just in June of this year, Sikhs held a parade of floats in Canada, in which actors recreated the assassination of then-Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi by Sikh guards in 1984. This scene caused a strong ** in India, which saw it as an insult to their prime minister and a violation of India's sovereignty and dignity. But the Canadians did nothing, other than to reiterate their support for freedom of expression and peace.
This incident has angered India, which sees Canada as conniving at Sikhs and challenging India's national interests. So, India decided to take action and sent ** to assassinate Nijjar on the territory of Canada. It was a well-planned operation in which two masked gunmen were outside the Sikh Cultural Centre in Nijjar, accurately hit him to the vital point, and then quickly fled the scene. This incident shocked the Sikh community in Canada and also caused great attention in Canada.
Canada** immediately launched an investigation, and soon found clues about India**. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau addressed Parliament accusing India of being an unacceptable violation of Canada's sovereignty by allegedly being Canadian citizens on Canadian territory. He demanded that India **cooperate with the investigation and hand it over, otherwise it will face severe consequences.
India** denied this, saying that Canada's accusations were groundless and deliberately creating trouble and undermining friendly relations between the two countries. India also countered that Canada has been conniving at Sikhs and carrying out anti-India and anti-Modi activities in Canada, which is a real violation of India's sovereignty and dignity. India** also said that if Canada does not retract the charges, apologize and stop interfering in India's internal affairs, India will take all necessary measures to protect its national interests.
In response to Canada's allegations, India** expelled a senior Canadian diplomat and ordered him to leave the country within five days. Canada retaliated in reciprocal reciprocal reciprocal expulsion of a senior Indian diplomat. Relations between the two countries have reached an impasse, and previously ongoing ** negotiations have also been suspended. Canada** Minister Ng Fung Yee has also postponed her visit to India scheduled for October.
This diplomatic turmoil is not painful for India. India's economy and military strength far surpass that of Canada, and India also has the support of the United States, and India is not afraid of a head-on conflict with Canada. India's aim is to fight the forces of the Sikhs and eliminate their threat to India, and India will not abandon this goal because of Canada's **.
For Canada, it's a bit of a headache. Although the bilateral ** between Canada and India is not large, there is a lot of Canadian investment in India, and many Canadian companies also do business in India. If relations between the two countries deteriorate, Canada's economic interests will suffer. Moreover, Canada faces pressure from the Sikh community at home to demand justice for Nijjar's death and to protect their safety and rights. Trudeau has a hard time getting the best of both worlds, and he has to make a difficult choice between maintaining national sovereignty and maintaining political support.
In addition to Canada, the biggest headache has to be the United States. The United States has been trying to woo India as an important ally against China. The United States has also been encouraging India and Canada to strengthen economic and trade cooperation as economic partners against China. Now, there is a crisis in relations between India and Canada, and the strategic layout of the United States has also been affected. Whether the United States will intervene in mediation or choose to take sides will be a question that will test the wisdom of American diplomacy.
In short, the diplomatic turmoil between India and Canada has exposed the influence of Sikh ** in Canada, and also reflects the conflict of interests between India and Canada in international affairs. The outcome of this turmoil will have a far-reaching impact on the relations between the two countries and on the entire international pattern.