India lodges protest over Canada's allegations against Union Minister Amit Shah

MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal was quoted as saying by Hindustan Times: "We had summoned the representative of the Canadian High Commission yesterday, a diplomatic note was handed over in reference to the proceedings of the Standing Committee on Public Safety and National Security in Ottawa on October 29, 2024."

“It was conveyed in the note that the government of India protests in the strongest terms to the absurd and baseless references made to the Union Home Minister of India before the committee by deputy minister David Morrison,” Jaiswal said.

The Canadian government earlier publicly alleged that Shah was behind a recent series of plots to murder and intimidate Sikh separatists on Canadian soil.

Canadian Deputy Foreign Affairs Minister David Morrison recently testified before the parliamentary committee recently when he acknowledged he had leaked information to the Washington Post about Shah’s alleged role in a campaign of violence and threats against the Sikh diaspora over the last few years.

“The journalist called me and asked if it [Shah] was that person. I confirmed it was that person,” he was quoted as saying by The Guardian.

The United States has called Canada's allegations that India's Home Minister Amit Shah was involved in a plot targeting Khalistani separatists in Ottawa "concerning", media reports said.

State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller told reporters, "The allegations made by the government of Canada are concerning, and we will continue to consult with the Canadian government about those allegations."

India-Canada standoff over Khalistani row

A recent standoff between New Delhi and Ottawa was triggered after Canada Prime Minister Justin Trudeau accused Indian officials of being involved in the killing of Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar.

India responded sharply after Canada called the Indian High Commissioner and other diplomats "persons of interest" in the killing of Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar.

In a long statement, India's Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) earlier said, "We have received a diplomatic communication from Canada yesterday suggesting that the Indian High Commissioner and other diplomats are ‘persons of interest’ in a matter related to an investigation in that country. The Government of India strongly rejects these preposterous imputations and ascribes them to the political agenda of the Trudeau Government that is centered around vote bank politics.

"Since Prime Minister Trudeau made certain allegations in September 2023, the Canadian Government has not shared a shred of evidence with the Government of India, despite many requests from our side. This latest step follows interactions that have again witnessed assertions without any facts. This leaves little doubt that on the pretext of an investigation, there is a deliberate strategy of smearing India for political gains."

In a statement which leaves India vindicated, Trudeau later said he had no "hard evidentiary proof" to back his claims that India government officials were involved in Nijjar's killing.