On Wednesday, India issued a cautionary advisory to its citizens regarding travel to Canada, as the growing discord between the two nations deepens in light of allegations from Ottawa that India may have played a role in the assassination of a Sikh separatist leader in suburban Vancouver.
The updated travel advisory from the foreign ministry in New Delhi strongly advised Indian nationals, particularly those studying in Canada, to exercise vigilance due to the “increasing instances of anti-India activities and politically endorsed hate crimes.”
Additionally, the ministry recommended that Indians steer clear of locations in Canada where “specific threats have been directed towards Indian diplomats and segments of the Indian community opposing anti-India agendas.”
A diplomatic dispute has arisen between Ottawa and New Delhi, both pivotal partners in security and trade, following Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s assertion that India was linked to the murder of a Sikh independence advocate within Canada’s borders in June.
Canada has yet to furnish any concrete evidence implicating India in the assassination of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a 45-year-old Sikh leader gunned down by masked assailants in Surrey, near Vancouver.
India has long accused Nijjar, a Canadian citizen born in India, of having ties to terrorism, an allegation he vehemently denied. He claimed to be working on organizing an unofficial Sikh diaspora referendum for independence from India at the time of his assassination.
Trudeau’s announcement led to the expulsion of an Indian diplomat from Ottawa by Canada, which was countered by New Delhi with the expulsion of a Canadian diplomat.
In 2020, Indian authorities designated Nijjar as a terrorist, accusing him of supporting the demand for an independent Sikh homeland known as Khalistan. The Khalistan movement originated as an insurgency in India’s Punjab state in the 1970s and 1980s and was eventually suppressed by the Indian government.
Although the movement has since lost much of its political influence, it still has supporters in Punjab, where Sikhs constitute a majority, as well as within the significant overseas Sikh diaspora.
India’s foreign ministry contended that Trudeau’s allegations were an attempt to divert attention from Khalistani terrorists and extremists who have found refuge in Canada and continue to pose threats to India’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.
The ministry routinely issues travel advisories, having previously cautioned Indian citizens about traveling to Canada in September of the previous year due to a “sharp increase in incidents of hate crimes, sectarian violence, and anti-India activities” in the country.
The modern Sikh independence movement can be traced back to the 1940s but reached its peak during the insurgency of the 1970s and 1980s. In 1984, then-Prime Minister Indira Gandhi ordered a military operation to apprehend armed separatists taking refuge in the holiest Sikh shrine.
This operation resulted in the deaths of hundreds of people, and shortly after, two of Gandhi’s Sikh bodyguards assassinated her. Subsequently, anti-Sikh riots erupted across India, leading to the brutal killing of members of the Sikh minority.
Although the insurgency was quelled long ago, the government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi has consistently warned of the resurgence of Sikh separatists. Modi’s administration has been urging several countries, including Canada, Australia, and the United Kingdom, to take legal action against Sikh separatists.
India has also, for years, accused Canada of providing sanctuary to Sikh separatists, including Nijjar.
The expulsion of diplomats has escalated tensions, resulting in frosty encounters between Trudeau and Modi during this month’s Group of 20 meeting in New Delhi. Furthermore, Canada canceled a trade mission to India that had been planned for the fall.
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