Nijjar murder finds no mention in Jaishankar-Blinken meeting despite Trudeau's plea

India's Foreign Minister S Jaishankar met the US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in Washington DC on Thursday (Sep 28) amid the diplomatic standoff between India and Canada over the killing of Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar. But interestingly, the issue did not figure publicly in the meeting.

Speaking to reporters, Blinken said that he and Jaishankar have had very good discussions at the recently-concluded G20 Summit in New Delhi and the 78th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York.

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"Good to be back here (in the US). We of course had Prime Minister (Narendra Modi) here this summer. We thank the US for all the support at the G20 Summit. And I actually look forward to seeing you (Blinken) in New Delhi," Jaishankar said.

The two leaders did not say anything about the row between India and Canada over Nijjar's killing. "Is Canada impacting your relationship?," a reporter present at the press conference asked Blinken, but the question went unanswered.

Trudeau was 'sure' that Blinken would raise Nijjar's murder with India

Earlier on Thursday, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau had said he was sure that Blinken would raise Nijjar's murder during his meeting with Jaishankar.

"The Americans will certainly discuss this matter with the Indian government," Trudeau told reporters.

Hardeep Singh Nijjar, who was labelled a terrorist by New Delhi in 2020, was killed by two identified men in British Columbia in June.

Trudeau, earlier this month, told Canadian Parliament that his government had "credible allegations" that Indian government agents may be linked to the killing, prompting an angry reaction from the New Delhi, which dismissed Ottawa's allegation as absurd.

Have consistently engaged with India over murder row: US

Amid the standoff between India and Canada over the murder of Nijjar, US State Department Spokesperson Matthew Miller said on Thursday that Washington consistently engaged with New Delhi on this question and has urged them to cooperate.

"And that engagement and the urge for them to cooperate will continue," Miller told reporters.

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