Blair Gable/Reuters
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau speaks to reporters in the foyer of the House of Commons on Parliament Hill in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada September 18, 2023. REUTERS/Blair Gable
CNN
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There are “credible allegations” linking the Indian government to the assassination of a Canadian citizen and prominent Sikh leader, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Monday.
“Over the past several weeks, Canadian security agencies have been actively pursuing credible allegations of a possible link between agents of the Indian government and the killing of Canadian citizen Hardeep Singh Nijjar,” Trudeau said, adding that his government would take all necessary steps. necessary to “bring the perpetrators of this murder to justice”.
Nijjar was a prominent Sikh leader in British Columbia and was shot in June in his car by two masked gunmen outside a Sikh temple in Surrey, BC, according to local police.
His death shocked and outraged Canada’s large Sikh community, which now numbers in the hundreds of thousands.
India had designated Niijar as a terrorist threat a few years ago and identified him as part of a separatist movement for Sikhism.
“Canada has expressed its deep concern to the Indian government’s top intelligence and security officials. Last week, at the G20, I personally and directly conveyed them to Prime Minister Modi under certain conditions. any involvement of a foreign government in the killing of a Canadian citizen on Canadian soil is an unacceptable violation of our sovereignty,” Trudeau said during his speech to parliament, calling it an “extremely serious matter.”
Canadian police have not made any arrests in connection with Niijara’s murder, but in an August update, police released a statement saying they were now investigating three possible suspects and released a description of a possible getaway vehicle, asking for the public’s help.
CNN reached out to the Indian High Commission in Ottawa for comment, but did not receive a response.
