Canada Fails to Provide Any Evidence on Nijjar Killing

Despite Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s failure to provide any substantiated evidence supporting his claims of India’s involvement in the death of Khalistani operative Hardeep Nijjar, Canada’s CBC (Canadian Broadcasting Corporation) has reported that Canada has gathered both human and signal intelligence in its investigation.

CBC, citing undisclosed sources, asserts that the Canadian government’s intelligence includes conversations with Indian diplomats within Canada. Additionally, it claims that certain Indian officials have not outright denied the existence of this intelligence when discussed in private.

Trudeau’s allegations of India’s role in the killing of Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar have been vehemently denied by New Delhi, which has labeled them as both “absurd” and “motivated.” During a press conference in New York, Trudeau failed to present concrete evidence supporting these allegations, but he insisted on the presence of “credible reasons” linking India to Nijjar’s death.

Trudeau stated, “There are credible reasons to believe that agents of the Government of India were involved in the killing of a Canadian on Canadian soil. That is … there is something of utmost foundational importance in a country’s rule of law in a world where the international rules-based order matters.” He called upon the Indian government to treat the matter seriously, urging transparency, accountability, and justice.

According to CBC News, Canada’s government has accumulated this intelligence over several months as part of the investigation into Nijjar’s death. The collected information includes communications involving Indian diplomats in Canada. Additionally, some of this intelligence is reported to have been shared by an unnamed ally within the Five Eyes intelligence alliance (comprising the US, UK, Australia, New Zealand, and Canada).

In relation to the case, numerous Canadian officials have visited India in search of cooperation in the investigation into Hardeep Singh Nijjar’s death. Canada’s National Security and Intelligence Adviser, Jody Thomas, spent over four days in India in mid-August and returned for five days this month. The latter visit coincided with the meeting between Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, as reported by CBC News.

However, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) from India stated that Canada had not shared any specific information regarding Nijjar’s killing. MEA spokesperson Arindam Bagchi mentioned during a briefing, “We are willing to look at any specific information that is provided to us, but so far we have received no specific information from Canada.” He added that specific evidence concerning criminal activities on Canadian soil had been shared by India with Canada but remained unacted upon. Bagchi also expressed the belief that the allegations by the Canadian government seemed to be politically motivated.

Hardeep Nijjar, designated as a terrorist in India, was fatally shot outside a Sikh temple in Surrey, British Columbia, on June 18.

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