‘Nijjar was a foreign terrorist,’ Top opposition figure in Canada rips into Trudeau over India row

A top opposition figure in Canada has now accused Prime Minister Justin Trudeau of using the escalating diplomatic row with India for his political gains and a mere distraction from other issues. Maxime Bernier, who leads People’s Party of Canada, said Thursday (Oct 17) that while charges against the Indian government and diplomats were serious, the Trudeau government has so far failed to furnish any proof.

“If true, allegations made by the RCMP and the Liberal government that Indian diplomats participated in criminal activities on our territory are very serious and should be dealt with. So far however, we haven’t been given any proof. And Trudeau is clearly using this crisis to divert the attention from other controversies,” Maxime Bernier wrote in a post on X.

‘Nijjar a foreign terrorist’

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Notably, Bernier also rubbished the claims that Hardeep Singh Nijjar, the Khalistani separatist leader who was killed on Canadian soil last year, was a Canadian citizen. Bernier said Nijjar was a foreign terrorist and he should have been deported to India.

“One myth should be dispelled though: That the central figure in this controversy, Hardeep Singh Nijjar, the Khalistani militant who was murdered last year, was a Canadian. He was actually a foreign terrorist who used fraudulent documents to claim asylum in Canada several times starting in 1997. His claims were rejected but he was nevertheless allowed to stay in this country and was somehow granted citizenship in 2007,” Maxime Bernier added.

The People’s Party of Canada leader also urged his government to revoke Nijjar’s citizenship posthumously and correct the administrative error.

“Nijjar wasn’t a Canadian. We should perhaps posthumously take away his citizenship to right this administrative error. He should have been deported after his first fake asylum claim, like the hundreds of thousands of fake asylum claimants who are in Canada right now,” he added.

The root cause

Bernier highlighted the root cause of the worsening foreign relations of Canada, blaming it upon the North American country’s history of inviting controversial people and offering them citizenship or residency.

"All this is happening because Canada has for decades deliberately invited these foreigners and their tribal conflicts into our country. We should recognize this major blunder and work with the government of India to find solutions instead of jeopardizing our relations with a rising world power and an important ally over this issue,” the People’s Party of Canada leader added.

Earlier on Monday (Oct 14), PM Trudeau alleged the Indian government was “attacking me” personally and the integrity of the government of Canada, following his allegations that agents of the Indian governments were behind the killing of Nijjar.

He voiced strong concerns over "clear and compelling evidence" of the involvement of the agents of India in activities threatening public safety. In a major downturn for already tensed India-Canada ties, New Delhiexpelled six Canadian diplomats on Monday and withdrew its diplomats from Ottawa.