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Indian envoy Dinesh Patnaik strongly rejected accusations of Indian state involvement in criminal activities on Canadian soil.
The Indian envoy said Canada and India may have their differences, but any assertions of Indian government involvement in crimes against Canadians aren’t based in reality. (Photo: X file)
India’s High Commissioner to Canada Dinesh Patnaik has accused the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) of being “politically compromised” and claimed Canadian police are probing “fantasy” allegations linking Indian officials to crimes against Canadians.
In an interview with The Globe and MailPatnaik strongly rejected accusations of Indian state involvement in criminal activities on Canadian soil. He also alleged that Khalistani groups had influenced Canadian intelligence officials to spread false claims against India.
Patnaik’s remarks come at a time when New Delhi and Ottawa are attempting to repair bilateral ties that hit a historic low after former Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau accused India of involvement in the killing of Khalistan activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in British Columbia in 2023.
The Indian envoy said the investigation into Nijjar’s killing had been “twisted around” and politicised. He further claimed that CSIS had been compromised by Sikh separatist groups allegedly using Canada as a base for their Khalistan campaign.
The Indian envoy said Canada and India may have their differences, but any assertions of Indian government involvement in crimes against Canadians aren’t based in reality. “There are some real issues and some fantasy issues,” he said.
The comments also come amid renewed economic outreach between the two countries. Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal is currently in Ottawa along with what the Indian government described as its largest-ever business delegation to Canada. More than 100 senior representatives from India’s mining, energy, automotive and aerospace sectors are part of the visit, aimed at boosting trade and investment ties despite lingering diplomatic tensions.
Goyal said Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney’s recent visit to India has helped pave the way for a complete reset of Canada-India relations. He said Carney’s visit in late February — the first visit by a Canadian prime minister in eight years — “completely changed the way Canada and India looked at each other”.
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