India to recall top envoy to Canada: Foreign ministry
Move comes after Canada said it wanted to question top diplomat in Sikh probe
India said Monday it was withdrawing its envoy to Canada because Ottawa was investigating him and other diplomats as "persons of interest", after the killing last year of a Sikh separatist leader.
"We have no faith in the current Canadian Government's commitment to ensure their security," the foreign ministry said in a statement. "Therefore, the Government of India has decided to withdraw the High Commissioner and other targeted diplomats and officials."
Earlier, New Delhi said it received notice via a diplomatic communication that India’s High Commissioner to Canada, Sanjay Kumar Verma, as well as other Indian diplomats, were persons of interest in the investigation, India’s Ministry of External Affairs said in a statement on Monday. The ministry rejected what it called “preposterous imputations” made by Canada and said the move was politically motivated.
The ministry hinted the government could take retaliatory action against Canadian diplomats in India. Canada’s High Commission in New Delhi didn’t immediately respond to requests for further information.
India’s government didn’t specify the investigation in which Verma was being sought for questioning, but the statement referred to allegations made by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in September 2023. At the time, Trudeau accused the Indian government of masterminding the assassination of a Sikh separatist and Canadian citizen, Hardeep Singh Nijjar, in British Columbia.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government has repeatedly denied any involvement in the murder of Nijjar, and the designation of Verma as a person of interest is likely to further inflame ties between New Delhi and Ottawa.
Relations between the two countries hit a low point after Trudeau’s allegations, with India expelling dozens of Canadian diplomats and restricting travel. On Monday, New Delhi hinted at more action against Canadian officials, saying “India now reserves the right to take further steps in response to these latest efforts of the Canadian government to concoct allegations against Indian diplomats,” according to the statement.