India, Canada News LIVE: NIA Action Against Pannun; Trudeau Slammed Over Nijjar's Video

The snowballing diplomatic standoff between New Delhi and Ottawa, stemming from Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s allegations of India’s involvement in the killing of Khalistani Sikh separatist leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar in his country led to the Narendra Modi government on Wednesday issuing a strongly-worded advisory to Indian nationals in Canada, warning against “anti-India activities” and “politically-condoned hate crimes”.

Many media outlets called the Indian advisory a tit-for-tat move against the updated travel advisory issued by Canada a day earlier when it urged its citizens to exercise a “high degree of caution” while travelling to India, citing a terrorism threat.

However, the said clash of advisories also brought the spotlight on the India section of the official Government of Canada travel information and advice webpage. Read more here.

A Kashmir-based Sikh body on Saturday said the India-Canada row was “a political gimmick” by the establishment to garner votes in the elections and that the community was an integral part of the country. “Everything is politically exploited. Sikhs are an integral part of this country. Since RSS came into power, the only agenda it has is that they will talk about ‘gharwapsi’ whether it be in Muslims, Sikhs or anybody. We are not going to tolerate it,” All Parties Sikh Coordination Committee Chairman Jagmohan Singh Raina told reporters.

Congress MP Ravneet Singh Bittu on Saturday welcomed the National Investigation Agency’s move to confiscate the properties of Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, a member of the banned pro-Khalistani group Sikhs for Justice (SFJ), and urged the government to extradite the designated terrorist.

Ravneet Bittu is the grandson of Beant Singh, then chief minister of Punjab who was assassinated by extremists in 1995.

“The government should extradite him (Pannun). I appreciate this action,” the Ludhiana MP told News18. “His properties should be bulldozed. Pannun’s properties should be bombed. He is supplying drugs. He is insulting our country. His property should be bulldozed… this is a welcome step,” he added.

There is no question of compromising on issues related to terrorism, Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri told News18 in an exclusive interview on the plummeting relations between India and Canada over Ottawa’s allegations that New Delhi had a hand in the murder of Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar.

“Allegations are very different from evidence. I am sure the Ministry of External Affairs will deal with this. As far as I am concerned, there is no question of compromising on issues of terror. I have chaired the UN committee on terror. This business of going soft on some terrorists and not agreeing on the definition because one country’s terrorist is another country’s freedom fighter is very so and so (sic),” the Union Minister for Housing & Urban Affairs and Petroleum & Natural Gas said. Full Interview Here.

A section of Canadians have questioned the Justin Trudeau government over its casual approach to questions on the background and origins of Khalistani separatist-terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar amid Trudeau alleging India played a role in his death.

A video went viral on social media where Nijjar is seen advocating for the killing of officials with suicide vests while addressing a gathering inside a gurdwara there. He is seen lauding those who killed former prime minister Indira Gandhi and former chief minister Beant Singh.

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has confiscated the properties of designated terrorist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, a US-based member of the banned pro-Khalistani group Sikhs for Justice (SFJ).

The NIA had approached a special court for the confiscation of the immovable properties belonging to Pannun under section 33(5) of the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA), 1967, an official release said.

Fringe organisation SFJ, run by a few radical Sikhs of foreign nationality in the US, Canada, the UK, etc, was declared unlawful under the provisions of Section 3(1) of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967. Read more here.

Khalistani groups are running propaganda against India in the media over the killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Canada, top intelligence sources have told CNN-News18.

All media outlets involved in this anti-India campaign have Khalistani links, they added.

Gurpreet Singh Sahota, who is the editor of the news website Chadhti Kalan, has been working for Khalistani separatist Satinder Pal Singh Gill since 1991, said the sources.

To draw traffic to the website, they have been spreading propaganda about Indian involvement in Nijjar’s killing, said officials.

Reacting to US State Secretary Antony Blinken’s statement and his ‘transnational repression’ fears, Michael Rubin said that, “Let’s not fool ourselves, Hardeep Singh Nijjar was not simply a plumber any more than Osama Bin Laden was a construction engineer. He had blood on his hands through multiple attacks.”

“Secretary Blinken may, after the facts, say that the United States will always stand against transnational oppression. We’re actually being hypocritical if Secretary Blinken makes that statement,” Rubin said, referring to the killings of Iranian Quds chief Qasem Soleimani and former al-Qaeda chief Osama Bin Laden.

Rubin also criticised the Canadian government for not backing their claims with credible evidence and said Trudeau is shooting from the hip.

The Consulate General of India in Toronto, as per Economic Times, has extended consular services for Indian nationals in Canada. The services extended include passport issuance, attestation, police clearance certificate and passport renewal.

John Manley, who was Canada’s deputy prime minister from 2002 to 2003 in the Jean Chretien government, urged Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to not run for the upcoming election as Liberal Party leader.

He backed his request up by citing three rules. First, he referred to the famous and critically acclaimed television sitcom, Seinfeld, and secondly, he highlighted that change is a force of nature in politics. Thirdly, he pointed out that his predecessors did not continue in the job past a decade.

Manley pointed to the success of the show and highlighted that the creator Jerry Seinfled discontinued the show after nine seasons and did not go for a tenth season. Manley said Seinfeld decided to end the sitcom when it was the most popular.

“So 2025, Mr. Trudeau will have had 10 seasons. Before him, Stephen Harper — nine seasons. Before him, Jean Chretien — 10 seasons. Before him, Brian Mulroney — nine seasons. You want a renewal after 10 seasons?” Manley was quoted as saying by Bloomberg BNN.

The bilateral ties between India and Canada have hit a new low ever since the G20 Summit when Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau visited India and held a bilateral talk with PM Narendra Modi. During Trudeau’s visit, PM Modi conveyed India’s strong concerns about the continuing anti-India activities of extremist elements in Canada.

Following Trudeau’s departure from New Delhi, the two countries announced cancelling negotiations on a bilateral free trade agreement. In a recent development, Trudeau has accused India of being involved in the killing of Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar, who was fatally shot earlier this year.

Both India and Canada have expelled top diplomats from the respective countries amid soured relations. Amid the widening rift between the two countries, let’s take a look at the bilateral relations between the two countries and its economic implications. EXPLAINED HERE

India followed due protocol and offered its best services to Justin Trudeau but the Canadian prime minister refused to accept any help, top government sources told CNN-News18 as the Khalistan row between the two countries escalated further on Thursday.

The sources said Trudeau was not in the perfect frame when he arrived in India due to pressure back home over various issues. However, diplomatically, he was treated as state guest and all protocols were cleared at the top level from the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO). Read more

A week after his return from yet another embarrassing visit to India, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has launched a diplomatic attack on India stirring an escalation in the Indo-Canadian ties not seen in decades. On Tuesday, India woke up to Canada expelling its top diplomat, and Trudeau’s statement in the House of Commons claiming “credible allegations of a potential link” between the Indian government and the murder of Canada-based Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar.

Bruised by the drubbing he received for a whole week over a lost opportunity at the G20 summit, criticism from India and an airplane snag holding him down for more than a day before finally taking off from New Delhi, Trudeau is out to save face making unprecedented allegations against India as if in retaliation. One look at Canada’s behaviour over the last few days will tell you that if the word “unhinged” were a person, it would be Justin Trudeau. Read more

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has gone rogue. He is now accusing India of orchestrating extra-judicial killings on Canadian soil. Has the Canadian leader, whose popularity and ratings are in the doldrums, provided any evidence to support his wild claims? Not really. One must read Trudeau’s frivolous statement carefully. He has talked about “allegations” about a “potential” link between Hardeep Nijjar’s death and “Indian agents”. What this means is that Canada has no substantial proof to definitively say that India was somehow involved in the death of Nijjar. By the way, India had designated Nijjar as a terrorist. So, for India, Nijjar was a Khalistani terrorist before being a Canadian citizen. That is all that matters. (Opinion here)

In the midst of escalating tensions between India and Canada, last-minute airfares along the India-Canada routes have skyrocketed, leaving travelers in dismay.

Data from well-known travel portals paints a challenging picture for individuals planning flights between New Delhi and Toronto. Spot fares for direct flights have now breached the Rs 1.46 lakh mark. The return journey from Toronto to Delhi is equally daunting, with fares exceeding Rs 1.01 lakh. Full details here.

The India-Canada diplomatic row has deepened since India expelled a Canadian diplomat on Tuesday in a reciprocal move after Ottawa cast out an Indian envoy. A top diplomatic source told CNN-News18 that the actions of Trudeau, who faces flagging popularity in his own country, reek of “immaturity” and “frustration”.

The official said that Trudeau appears to be attempting to court the Sikh lobby in Canada that holds significant electoral influence. He also seems to be smarting after a disastrous India trip during the recent G20 summit, when he got the cold shoulder from New Delhi and also had to face embarrassments like his aircraft refusing to fly him back home, said the official.

The bilateral ties between India and Canada have deteriorated after Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau alleged “potential” Indian links to the killing of Khalistani separatist leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar and expelled an Indian diplomat over the issue.

India rejected Trudeau’s remarks as “absurd” and “motivated” and reacted strongly by saying that such “unsubstantiated” allegations seek to “shift the focus from Khalistani terrorists and extremists, who have been provided shelter in Canada and continue to threaten India’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.”

India summoned Canadian High Commissioner Cameron MacKay at the MEA headquarters at South Bloc and he was asked to leave India within the next five days, as per sources. Explained here.

All that could have gone wrong during Justin Trudeau’s recent India visit went wrong. First, he was royally ignored by New Delhi, and then when he met Prime Minister Narendra Modi, he was rebuffed for Canada’s pro-Khalistan stand. The icing on the cake was the grounding of Trudeau and his team in Delhi for two days due to a technical issue with the prime minister’s aircraft. The Government of India did offer the services of Air India One, but the Canadian PM preferred to wait for his own plane.

All through, Trudeau appeared to be a sore loser, grumping at the cold-shouldering he met at the G20 Summit. His team members took six hours to respond to a simple Delhi offer to provide Air India One. They even refused to put Trudeau in the presidential suite that was specially arranged by Indian security teams during the summit, and instead opted for a normal room for the Canadian PM. Read more

The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) has announced temporarily suspending issuance of visas to Canadian citizens in view of “security threats” faced by its high commission and consulates in Canada.

Who Will Be Impacted? All Canadian nationals who intend to visit India and do not have a visa will be affected by the suspension of visa services, including tourists, business travellers and students.

Will This Affect Indian-Origin Canadians? Indian-origin Canadians who have a valid Overseas Citizen of India card or a long-term visa for India will not be impacted.

Will Tourism Be Impacted? Yes, tourism experts in India were expecting a large number of tourists from Canada to visit in the winter months as foreign tourism was boosting after the Covid-19 pandemic. Find out more here.