Ex-Envoy: Trudeau's Nijjar Claims Hurt India-Canada Ties and Reputation

Verma, in an interview with ANI, said that the first was the impact on bilateral ties, and the second was the damage to reputation.

Verma said, "This episode had two major impacts. One on bilateral relations itself, because everything was put on hold. Downsizing of mission, EFTA put on hold, early progress trade agreement put on hold, and no high-level visits are taking place. So we lost two years. But so this is one part. So Canadians thought that we six, who have been declared persona non grata, are actually criminals. We are not diplomats."

"Now that damage to our reputation, that damage to our emotional fabric. Who is going to amend that? We are soldiers for our country, and we'll take it in stride. But I always would say that my colleagues have been treated very badly by this Canadian narrative, which I think was falsely created," he added.

Verma said that India maintained that there was a crime that took place in Canada, and that the judicial system should take the final call, sans keeping bilateral ties as hostage.

He said, "Even at that time (during Trudeau's government), what we had been maintaining was that yes, there is a crime committed in Canada. The judicial process should see it through and reach a finality, but this should not allow the bilateral relation to be hostage to this particular episode."

Verma also lauded current Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney's work in restoring bilateral relations between the two nations.

"Thankfully, the present Prime Minister of Canada, Prime Minister Carney, has been able to see through it, and what he has done is that he has not taken the case off the court, which is going on, so that is still there, but he has moved ahead with other relationships with India and he had a very successful visit to India as I see...The convergence between India and Canada is so high that we can look at much better days of bilateral relations in the coming years and decades," he said.

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