India’s High Commissioner to Canada, Sanjay Sharma has questioned the “rule of law” in Canada after the country “convicted” India even without full investigation in the killing of Khalistani extremist Hardeep Singh Nijjar.
Speaking to a Canadian TV channel, the Indian High Commissioner to Canada said, “There are two points on that. One is that, even without the investigation being concluded, India was convicted. Is that a rule of law?”
When asked how India was convicted, Sharma said, “Because India was asked to cooperate and if you look at the typical criminal terminology, when someone asks to cooperate, it means you have already been convicted and you better cooperate”.
The Indian Envoy further reiterated India’s stand on the issue and said New Delhi will look into it if “specific and relevant” information is shared by Ottawa.
“So, we took it in a very different interpretation. But, we have always said that if there is anything very specific and relevant, and communicated to us. We will look into it,” the Indian envoy added.
Nijjar, a Canadian citizen was designated terrorist by New Delhi in 2020. He was murdered by masked gunmen in June early this year.
However, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau accused India of playing a role in his murder. Trudeau said that Ottawa has “credible allegations” of involvement of Indian government agents in the June killing of Nijjar.
The startling claim by the Canadian prime minister brought the two countries on the brink of a diplomatic breakdown.
India dismissed his claims as “absurd and politically motivated” and demanded evidence. Canada, however, failed to provide any specific evidence supporting Trudeau’s claim.
However, the issue seriously damaged the already strained bilateral relations between India and Canada.