Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is accusing the government of India of being behind a fatal shooting on Canadian soil.
Canadian citizen Hardeep Singh Nijjar was brazenly shot dead outside a Sikh temple in Surrey, B.C. on June 18.
Nijjar, a supporter of a Sikh homeland in the form of an independent Khalistani state, had been branded by the Indian government as a "terrorist" and accused of leading a militant separatist group — something his supporters have denied.
Now, Trudeau said, Canada's national security apparatus has reason to believe that "agents of the Indian government" carried out the killing of this Canadian citizen, who also served as the president of Surrey's Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdwara.
"Canadian security agencies have been actively pursuing credible allegations of a potential link between agents of the Government of India and the killing of a Canadian citizen, Hardeep Singh Nijjar," Trudeau said Monday.
"Any involvement of a foreign government in the killing of a Canadian citizen on Canadian soil is an unacceptable violation of our sovereignty. It is contrary to the fundamental rules by which free, open, and democratic societies conduct themselves," Trudeau said.
"As you would expect, we have been working closely and coordinating with our allies on this very serious matter."
Trudeau urged the Indian government to participate in the ongoing investigation and "cooperate with Canada to get to the bottom of this matter."
He said some Indo-Canadians are feeling "angry" and "perhaps frightened right now."
"Let us not allow this to change us," he said.
Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly said she has ordered the expulsion of "a senior Indian diplomat."
That diplomat is the head of the Research and Analysis Wing (RAW), India's foreign intelligence agency, in Canada.
"My expectations are clear. I expect India to fully collaborate with us and get to the bottom of this," Joly said.
Public Safety Minister Dominic LeBlanc said the RCMP is leading the murder investigation.
"We'll hold the perpetrators accountable and bring them to justice," he said.
Trudeau said he raised the matter with India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi last week at the G20 summit in New Delhi.
Trudeau and Modi have long had a frosty relationship.
After the bilateral meeting between the two leaders on the sidelines of that summit, the Indian government released a tersely worded communique that said Modi raised with Trudeau "strong concerns about continuing anti-Indian activists of extremist elements in Canada."
The statement said there are elements in Canada "promoting secessionism" and "inciting violence against Indian diplomats, damaging diplomatic premises and threatening the Indian community in Canada."
The Indian government called on the two countries to cooperate in dealing with "such threats."
The Canadian communique on the same meeting made no mention of "secessionism." It's now clear why.
My vote goes to Modi.
