Canada Police Chief Clears India in Nijjar Case, Ex-Envoy Calls It Vindication

In an interview with ANI, Verma said the latest statement by the Canadian National Police Chief clearly separates two aspects: the ongoing criminal case related to Nijjar's killing and broader allegations of transnational repression or foreign interference.

"When I look at it, what he said - let's be very clear what he said first. He has kept it in two different buckets. One bucket is the Khalistani terrorist who was killed there. And another bucket is transnational repression and transnational crimes," Verma explained.

The former envoy noted that the four accused individuals had reportedly entered Canada as students and that their trial is currently underway and emphasised that the legal process should take its course independently.

The remarks come as the Commissioner of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) has said that there is no threat to Canadians from any agent linked to India.

In an interview with CTV, RCMP Commissioner Mike Duheme said the dots do not connect to a foreign entity.

"Well, what I quoted in 2024 was based on the criminal investigation that we had at the time. The government official who made that quote - I'm not quite sure who briefed him. What I'm saying is that for that particular file at that time, yes, I did say you had agents or proxies from the government. But what we're seeing right now in transnational repression, the dots don't always connect to a foreign entity," Duheme said.

On the issue of the Bishnoi gang, which has been linked to extortion in cities like Surrey, Brampton and Calgary, Duheme noted the complexity of these cases and stressed that there are currently no confirmed links between the gang's criminal activities and the Government of India.

On the broader issue of alleged foreign interference, Verma reiterated India's consistent stance, adding that earlier allegations lacked credible evidence.

"When you look at the first bucket, so there a court case that's already on; charges have been filed against four Indian nationals. These four Indian nationals went to Canada as international students. God knows what happened in the society and they became whatever they have been alleged to have become. And their trial is on. Now the second bucket is India's overall engagement in Canada," Verma stated.

The former envoy expressed satisfaction over the recent clarification by Canadian authorities.

"And initially, if you recall when I was still serving in Ottawa, a lot of noise was there on India's role in transnational repression as well as transnational crimes in Canada, and I always said it is not India's policy to interfere in the internal affairs of any other country. Unfortunately, this was not accepted by the regime of that particular point of time. But I'm very glad to see the statement which came out. And what he said was that right now he doesn't see any link with any foreign entity, which includes India," the former envoy said.

"So personally, I'm very happy. Personally, I feel that what we all have been advocating for has seen the end of the tunnel. And I hope that this augurs well with the future relationship of India and Canada," he added.

India and Canada encountered a diplomatic chill in 2023 when New Delhi expressed concerns over Canada's perceived leniency towards Khalistani extremist and separatist elements, with then Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau alleging that Indian agents were involved in the killing of NIA-designated terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar outside a gurdwara in Canada the same year.

Amid this diplomatic wrangle, Canada issued a diplomatic communication suggesting that the Indian High Commissioner and other diplomats were "persons of interest" in Nijjar's killing.

India "strongly" rejected the claims and termed them "preposterous imputations" and part of the political agenda of the Trudeau government. Following this, Verma and five other diplomats were recalled by New Delhi.

Verma, during the interview, described these earlier accusations against India as politically motivated.

"We always said that this is politically motivated; we always said that this is vote-bank politics; we always said that there is no--there is no evidence available to say so. And we are glad that this is coming true and finally they will see India for what it is, a deep civilization and India, which doesn't interfere with any other country's internal affairs," he said.

He also expressed hope that the new development would help improve bilateral ties between India and Canada.

"I hope this augurs well for the future relationship between the two countries," he added.

Both nations have worked consistently to normalise ties, culminating in Mark Carney's visit to India.

- ANI