India has dismissed a report in The Globe and Mail as a “smear campaign” that alleged Indian officials, including the Prime Minister, were aware of a plot to assassinate Sikh separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar.
External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal called the claims “ludicrous statements” made by an unnamed Canadian government source and said they should be rejected outright. “We do not normally comment on media reports, but such ludicrous statements deserve to be dismissed with the contempt they merit,” Jaiswal said, adding that such reports only strain already fragile ties between India and Canada.
The report cited a senior Canadian national security official, claiming that India’s National Security Advisor and External Affairs Minister were aware of the alleged plot. Nijjar, designated as a terrorist by India, was shot dead outside a gurdwara in Surrey, British Columbia, in June 2023. Canadian authorities have since arrested and charged four Indian nationals in connection with the murder.
India has repeatedly denied any involvement in Nijjar’s killing and has criticized Canada for failing to provide evidence to substantiate its allegations. Relations between the two nations have worsened significantly since Canada accused Indian High Commissioner Sanjay Verma and other diplomats of involvement in the murder.
In response, India expelled six Canadian diplomats, including Charge d’Affaires Stewart Wheeler, and withdrew its envoy, calling Canada’s accusations “preposterous” and politically motivated. The Trudeau government had earlier designated Indian diplomats as “persons of interest” in its investigation.
New Delhi continues to condemn what it describes as a baseless and politically driven narrative from Ottawa.