Canada's claim that the Indian government might have had a role in assassinating a Sikh activist on Canadian soil has led New Delhi to expel a high-ranking Canadian diplomat as the relationship between the two countries falls apart..Canada first expelled a high-ranking Indian diplomat, Foreign Affairs minister Mélanie Joly referred to as the leader of the Indian intelligence agency operating in Canada..“Today, we’re acting by expelling a key diplomat, but we will get to the bottom of this,” Joly told the media in Ottawa on Monday afternoon..Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has discussed this matter with both U.S. President Joe Biden and British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, according to Joly..On Tuesday, India's foreign ministry responded by announcing the expulsion of a senior Canadian diplomat stationed in India..“The concerned diplomat has been asked to leave India within the next five days,” it said in a statement. .“The decision reflects Government of India’s growing concern at the interference of Canadian diplomats in our internal matters and their involvement in anti-India activities.”.The back-and-forth removal of diplomats happened because Trudeau stated that Canada was looking into “credible allegations” that connected India to the June murder of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a well-known Sikh leader..“Over the past number of weeks, 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 in parliament on Monday..Nijjar was a well-known Sikh leader in Western Canada. According to local police, he was fatally shot in his vehicle in June by two gunmen wearing masks outside a Sikh temple in Surrey, British Columbia..After Trudeau's remarks, two notable Sikh community organizations in Canada, the British Columbia Gurdwaras Council (BCGC) and Ontario Gurdwaras Committee (OGC), called on the Canadian government to “immediately suspend all intelligence, investigative and prosecutorial cooperation with India.”.“Canada’s comprehensive response must reflect the gravity of India’s role in the premeditated murder of a Sikh dissident living in Canada,” said BCGC and OGC in a joint statement.
