Political parties in Canada are taking steps toward an emergency parliamentary study into the controversy.
At a State Department briefing, spokesperson Matthew Miller expressed disappointment that India has not yet chosen to collaborate with Canadian investigators, stating that the U.S. had made clear the gravity of the allegations. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s government, which had not previously commented on how Canada’s allies were responding, welcomed the U.S. support.
These allegations—centering around the involvement of Indian diplomats and consular officials in organized crime, including violent incidents targeting the South Asian community in Canada—were raised in separate press conferences by Mr. Trudeau and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) on Monday. The RCMP highlighted connections between Indian agents and at least three murders over the past two years, including the killings of Hardeep Singh Nijjar and Sukhdool Singh Gill, both linked to the pro-Khalistan movement.
India has denied the accusations, calling them “preposterous” and politically motivated. In response, Ottawa expelled six Indian diplomats, with New Delhi retaliating by expelling six Canadian officials.
Amid rising tensions, U.S. officials also highlighted a separate case in which an Indian intelligence officer is accused of plotting to assassinate Sikh separatist leader Gurpatwant Singh Pannun in New York. While India has assured U.S. authorities that it is investigating, there has been no clear indication of full cooperation.
As both Canada and the U.S. seek to maintain key geopolitical ties with India, these criminal cases have created friction. Nonetheless, Canada has expressed its intent to keep economic and diplomatic channels open, with Trade Minister Mary Ng affirming the importance of maintaining commercial relations.
In Canada, opposition parties are pressuring the Trudeau government to increase measures to protect Canadian citizens, including possible sanctions on Indian diplomats. NDP leader Jagmeet Singh has also called for a ban on the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), a Hindu nationalist group he described as extremist.
India's main opposition Congress party has urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government to take all political parties into confidence regarding worsening ties with Canada, a day after the two countries said they expelled each other's diplomats.
Ties deteriorated further on Monday with the expulsions, while Canada linked India's diplomats to the murder of a Sikh separatist leader and accused the South Asian nation of a broader effort to target Indian dissidents in Canada.
Congress expected Modi to take leaders of other political parties into confidence on "the extremely sensitive and delicate issue of worsening India-Canada relations," party spokesperson Jairam Ramesh said on Monday.
The row is a major deterioration of ties between the Commonwealth members already frayed after Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said last year he had evidence linking Indian agents to the assassination of Sikh leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar on Canadian territory.
"India’s foreign policy has always been based on building domestic consensus, not on unilateralism," Sagarika Ghose, a lawmaker of the Trinamool Congress party, which is opposed to Modi, said in a post on X.
Trudeau said his government had "clear and compelling evidence that agents of the government of India have engaged in, and continue to engage in, activities that pose a significant threat to public safety."
India has long denied Trudeau's accusations. On Monday, it dismissed Canada's move and accused Trudeau of pursuing a "political agenda".
Canada had briefed New Zealand on the criminal investigation into violence against members of its South Asian community, Winston Peters, the foreign minister of the latter, said on Tuesday.
"The alleged criminal conduct outlined publicly by Canadian law enforcement authorities, if proven, would be very concerning," Peters said in a post on X.
