In his first remarks on America’s allegation of a plot by Indian nationals to assassinate a ‘Khalistan’ supporter, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said he will look into any evidence but asserted that a ”few incidents” won’t derail India-US ties.
In an exclusive interview to Financial Times, he said, “If someone gives us any information, we would definitely look into it. If a citizen of ours has done anything good or bad, we are ready to look into it. Our commitment is to the rule of law.”
Modi said India was “deeply concerned about the activities of certain extremist groups based overseas.” These elements, he said, under the guise of freedom of expression, have engaged in intimidation and incited violence.
Amid intense speculation over the fate of India-US ties in the wake of the alleged assassination plot, he asserted that there was a strong bipartisan support for the strengthening of the Indo-US relationship which was a clear indicator of a mature and stable partnership. ”Security and counter-terrorism cooperation has been a key component of our partnership,” he said, adding he did not think it was appropriate to link a few incidents with diplomatic relations between the two countries.
The target of the alleged assassination plot was Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, a dual citizen of the US and Canada, who has been designated as a terrorist by India. New Delhi has repeatedly accused the Western nations of not taking its security concerns, especially with regard to the activities of ‘Khalistan’ supporters.
The External Affairs Ministry recently announced the formation of a high-level committee to investigate the US allegation and “take necessary follow-up action”. External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar went on record to say that India would investigate the matter since it has bearing on the country’s own security.
The US allegation in November came close on the heels of a statement in September by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau that his country was investigating if Indian “agents” were behind the June killing of another ‘Khalistan’ backer Hardeep Singh Nijjar, in British Columbia in June. Hitting back at the allegations, India described the Canadian allegation as “absurd” and responded by asking 41 Canadian diplomats to leave the country.