Indo-Canadian politician Ruby Dhalla has strongly denied allegations suggesting she is linked to Indian authorities, calling them an attempt to “discredit” her leadership bid for the Liberal Party.

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In a statement on X, Dhalla said, “As the first woman of colour to run for Prime Minister in the history of Canada, I will not allow every person of colour or Canadian from a multicultural community to be painted with the brush of foreign interference. It is unacceptable and wrong.”

Also read: Who is Ruby Dhalla, Indian-origin politician running for Canada elections?

Speaking to CPAC, she said she was “shocked” by the allegations, calling them “completely false.” She confirmed that the Liberal Party had sent her campaign a set of questions, which they fully answered along with all supporting documents. The questions were related to two individuals using the same credit card to make campaign donations, which she explained was common among couples with joint accounts.

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What did Canadian media report?

The allegations first appeared in The Globe and Mail, which reported on Thursday that the Liberal Party had questioned Dhalla’s campaign about possible foreign interference from the Indian government under Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

However, the Liberal Party officially denied this claim. A spokesperson told CBC News that none of the questions sent to Dhalla were related to foreign interference.

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Also read: Ruby Dhalla, Canada's PM candidate, once acted in a Hindi film

Despite this, CBC News suggested a connection between Dhalla and the Indian government. The outlet reported that her social media activity showed her involvement in Indian politics, including assisting Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in state elections in 2017 and visiting Modi as part of a Sikh delegation in 2022.

Dhalla’s political background

Ruby Dhalla first entered Canadian politics in 2004 when she was elected as a Liberal MP from Brampton-Springdale. She was re-elected in 2006 and 2008 but lost in 2011. She later chose not to run in 2015 when the Liberal Party won a majority government. Her 2004 victory, along with Conservative Nina Grewal, made her one of the first women of Indian origin elected to the House of Commons.

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Previous claims of Indian interference in Canada

This is not the first time Canada has accused India of election interference. Last month, a report from the Canadian Commission claimed that, after China, India was the second most active country involved in foreign interference in Canada’s electoral process.

"India is the second most active country engaging in electoral foreign interference in Canada. Like the PRC, India is a critical actor on the world stage. Canada and India have worked together for decades, but there are challenges in the relationship. Many of these are long-standing and inform India's foreign interference activities," the report stated.

India rejected these claims, with its Ministry of External Affairs calling them "baseless."

"We have seen a report about alleged activities on purported interference. It is Canada which has been consistently interfering in India's internal affairs," India’s foreign ministry said.

The statement also accused Canada of enabling illegal migration and organised crime, adding, "We reject the report's insinuations on India and expect that the support system enabling illegal migration will not be further countenanced."

(With inputs from agencies)