OTTAWA:

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said on Friday the Indian government’s crackdown on Canadian diplomats was making normal life difficult for millions of people in both countries.

Trudeau spoke a day after Canada said it had withdrawn 41 diplomats following an Indian threat to unilaterally revoke their status. New Delhi is angry that Trudeau last month suggested Indian agents might have been involved in the June murder of a Sikh terrorist in Canada.

“The Indian government is making it unbelievably difficult for life as usual to continue for millions of people in India and in Canada. And they’re doing it by contravening a very basic principle of diplomacy,” Trudeau said.

“It’s something that has me very concerned for the wellbeing and happiness of millions of Canadians who trace their origins to the Indian subcontinent,” he told reporters at a televised press conference in Brampton, Ontario.

Trudeau said the expulsion of some of Canada’s diplomats will hamper travel and trade and pose difficulties for Indians studying in Canada.

Around two million Canadians, 5% of the overall population, have Indian heritage. India is by far Canada’s largest source of global students, making up for roughly 40% of study permit holders.

The Indian foreign ministry earlier rejected the idea it had violated the Vienna convention on diplomatic relations.

“The state of our bilateral relations, the much higher number of Canadian diplomats in India, and their continued interference in our internal affairs warrant a parity in mutual diplomatic presence in New Delhi and Ottawa,” it said in a statement.

Canada now has 21 diplomats remaining in India.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

High Commission of Canada in New Delhi.
| Photo Credit: AFP

Canada said Thursday it had withdrawn 41 diplomats from India – fallout from a bitter row over the killing of a Sikh separatist on Canadian soil.

New Delhi planned to revoke diplomatic immunity for all but 21 of Canada’s diplomats and their families by Friday, forcing Ottawa to pull out the others, Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly said.

“We have facilitated their safe departure from India,” Ms. Joly added. “This means that our diplomats and their families have now left.”

Relations between India and Canada have plunged since Prime Minister Justin Trudeau last month publicly linked Indian intelligence to the killing of Canadian citizen Hardeep Singh Nijjar, which New Delhi has denied.

Nijjar, who advocated for a separate Sikh state carved out of India, was wanted by Indian authorities for alleged terrorism and conspiracy to commit murder.

“Revoking the diplomatic immunity of 41 diplomats is not only unprecedented, but also contrary to international law,” Ms. Joly said Wednesday, but said Canada did not plan to retaliate in kind, so as to not “aggravate the situation.”

“Canada will continue to defend international law, which applies to all nations and will continue to engage with India,” she said.

“Now more than ever we need diplomats on the ground and we need to talk to one another,” Ms. Joly added.

Countermeasures

Canada has called for India to cooperate in the investigation but New Delhi has rejected the allegations and taken countermeasures, such as shutting down visa services for Canadians.

Ottawa also expelled an Indian diplomat over the affair.

External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar said last month in New York that his country would be willing to examine any evidence presented by Canada.

“We have actually been badgering the Canadians. We’ve given them loads of information about organized crime leadership which operates out of Canada,” Mr. Jaishankar said, referring to Sikh separatists.

“We have a situation where actually our diplomats are threatened, our consulates have been attacked and often comments are made (that are) interference in our politics,” he said.

The Indian government has called the Canadian accusations over the killing “absurd” and advised its nationals not to travel to certain Canadian regions “given the increase in anti-Indian activities.”

Also read | Indian students in Canada worried about lack of job opportunities

New Delhi also temporarily stopped processing visa applications in Canada.

Nijjar, who immigrated to Canada in 1997 and became a Canadian citizen in 2015, was shot dead by two masked assailants in the parking lot of a Sikh temple near Vancouver in June.

Canada is home to some 770,000 Sikhs, who make up about two percent of the country’s population, with a vocal group calling for creating a separate state of Khalistan.

The Sikh separatist movement is largely finished within India, where security forces used deadly force to put down an insurgency in the state of Punjab in the 1980s.

Hundreds of Sikh protesters rallied outside Indian diplomatic missions in Canada last month, burning flags and trampling on pictures of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The tensions between Ottawa and New Delhi have created a delicate situation for close Canadian ally Washington, which has in recent months taken steps to move closer to India as the United States seeks to limit Chinese influence in the region.

Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau speaks to media outside his office on Parliament Hill in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada October 3, 2023.
| Photo Credit: REUTERS

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Tuesday said Canada was not looking to “escalate” the situation with India amid the diplomatic row between the two countries over the killing of a Khalistani separatist and asserted that his government will continue to have “constructive relations” with New Delhi.

Speaking to reporters in Ottawa, Mr. Trudeau also said that it’s important for Canada to have diplomats on the ground in India, amid a report by London-based Financial Times that New Delhi wants as many as 41 of 62 remaining Canadian diplomats out of the country, the Toronto Sun newspaper reported.

“Obviously, we’re going through an extremely challenging time with India right now,” Mr. Trudeau was quoted as saying by the Canadian newspaper.

He, however, did not confirm the FT report that India has asked Canada to withdraw 41 of 62 diplomats from the country.

Asked if his government would retaliate by asking India to remove diplomats based in Canada, Mr. Trudeau insisted his government would try to keep working with New Delhi.

“We’re not looking to escalate, as I’ve said, we’re going to be doing the work that matters in continuing to have constructive relations with India through this extremely difficult time,” Mr. Trudeau was quoted as saying by the state-run CBC News.

Tensions flared between India and Canada last month following Mr. Trudeau’s allegations of “potential” involvement of Indian agents in the killing of Khalistani extremist Hardeep Singh Nijjar on June 18 in British Columbia. India angrily rejected the allegations as “absurd” and “motivated”.

Nijjar was shot dead by two masked gunmen. India had designated Nijjar as a terrorist in 2020.

Last month, India asked Canada to downsize its diplomatic staff in the country, arguing that there should be parity in strength and rank equivalence in the mutual diplomatic presence. The size of Canadian diplomatic staff in India is larger than what New Delhi has in Canada.

India also asked Canada to come down hard on terrorists and anti-India elements operating from its soil and suspended visa services for Canadians.

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar told journalists in Washington last week that the governments of India and Canada will have to talk to each other and see how they resolve their differences over the issue and underlined that the larger issue of “permissiveness” must be flagged and addressed.

Toronto:

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Tuesday said Canada was going through an “extremely challenging time” with India but asserted that Ottawa will continue to have “constructive relations” with New Delhi, amid the diplomatic row between the two countries over the killing of a Khalistani separatist.

Speaking to reporters in Ottawa, Mr Trudeau also said that it’s important for Canada to have diplomats on the ground in India, amid a report by London-based Financial Times that New Delhi wants as many as 41 of 62 remaining Canadian diplomats out of the country, the Toronto Sun newspaper reported.

“Obviously, we’re going through an extremely challenging time with India right now,” Mr Trudeau was quoted as saying by the Canadian newspaper.

He, however, did not confirm the FT report that India has asked Canada to withdraw 41 of 62 diplomats from the country.

Asked if his government would retaliate by asking India to remove diplomats based in Canada, Mr Trudeau insisted his government would try to keep working with New Delhi.

“We’re not looking to escalate, as I’ve said, we’re going to be doing the work that matters in continuing to have constructive relations with India through this extremely difficult time,” Mr Trudeau was quoted as saying by the state-run CBC News.

Tensions flared between India and Canada last month following Mr Trudeau’s allegations of “potential” involvement of Indian agents in the killing of Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar on June 18 in British Columbia. India angrily rejected the allegations as “absurd” and “motivated”.

Nijjar was shot dead by two masked gunmen. India had designated Nijjar as a terrorist in 2020.

Last month, India asked Canada to downsize its diplomatic staff in the country, arguing that there should be parity in strength and rank equivalence in the mutual diplomatic presence. The size of Canadian diplomatic staff in India is larger than what New Delhi has in Canada.

India also asked Canada to come down hard on terrorists and anti-India elements operating from its soil and suspended visa services for Canadians.

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar told journalists in Washington last week that the governments of India and Canada will have to talk to each other and see how they resolve their differences over the issue and underlined that the larger issue of “permissiveness” must be flagged and addressed.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

New Delhi:

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said today it is difficult to put a limit on the India-US relationship, and that the two countries now see each other as “desirable, optimal, and comfortable partners.”

Addressing an Indian community event in Washington DC, Mr Jaishankar said, “I am often asked, where do you think this relationship (India-US) is going…now it’s hard for me today, really, to put a limit on it, to define it, to even voice expectations, because in every way this relationship has exceeded expectations, which is why today we don’t even try to define it. We actually keep raising the bar.”

Mr Jaishankar held meetings with Secretary of State Antony Blinken, senior members of the US Administration, US business leaders, and think tank experts this week. The External Affairs Minister said that India and the United States have a “very compelling need” to work together and that it is in Washington’s interest to have partners who think and speak well of America.

Speaking to the community in Washington D.C. pic.twitter.com/p2Vtk6pG2X

— Dr. S. Jaishankar (@DrSJaishankar) October 1, 2023

“We keep finding new domains, the more we do with each other, the more we find we are able to do, explore together, and achieve together,” he added.

READ |“Must Talk To Each Other To Resolve Issue”: S Jaishankar Amid Row With Canada

“In this changing world, I would say, today, India and the United States have moved to a position where we really see each other as very desirable, optimal partners, comfortable partners, with whom it’s a natural instinct today. So, the chemistry and the comfort today of the relationship gives me enormous hope about where the prospects are,” he added.

Mr Jaishankar met with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in Washington recently, amid the diplomatic row with Canada over the killing of Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar on Canadian soil in June this year.

READ | “Let’s Not Normalise What’s Happening In Canada”: S Jaishankar

The foreign minister rejected Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s allegation that Indian government agents were involved in Nijjar’s killing, saying it was “inconsistent with India’s policy.”

Mr Blinken expressed deep concern over Mr Trudeau’s allegations, saying that the US is urging the Indian government to cooperate with the investigation to bring the perpetrators to justice.

Mr Jaishankar also met with US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin on Friday for a productive discussion on deepening bilateral defence cooperation between India and the US, including the co-production of defence articles. 

The Indian flag is seen flying at the High Commission of India in Ottawa, Wednesday, Sept. 20, 2023.
| Photo Credit: AP

A group of eminent Indian-Americans has condemned the brazen hateful comments and a hostile environment against Hindus in Canada and asked Ottawa not to mix freedom of expression with freedom for terror and endorse hate crimes by being silent on the issue.

The demand by Indian-Americans came after an offensive video from a pro-Khalistan group threatening Hindus in Canada to leave the country went viral.

“It is concerning to see Khalistani terrorists repeatedly threaten Hindu Canadians by desecrating and scarring Hindu sacred spaces on Canadian soil. Silence in the face of such brazen Hinduphobia – or worse, the justification that this is an acceptable form of political expression – is tantamount to the endorsement of hate crimes,” said Professor Indu Vishwanathan, co-founder and co-director of the Understanding Hinduphobia at the Hindu University of America.

“The Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau should not mix freedom of expression with freedom for terror. He should instead stop radicalisation, and drug gangs and diplomatically handle international situations,” Khanderao Kand, from the Foundation for India and Indian Diaspora Studies (FIIDS), said in a media statement.

The Khalistani video surfaced days after Trudeau’s allegations on September 18 of the “potential” involvement of Indian agents in the killing of Khalistani extremist Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a Canadian citizen, on Canadian soil on June 18 in British Columbia.

India angrily rejected Trudeau’s allegations as “absurd” and “motivated.” Though the Canadian government has said that acts of aggression, hate, intimidation or incitement of fear have no place in Canada, there was no action against anyone in connection with the video.

The chair of government affairs of the American Association of Physicians of Indian Origin, Dr Sampath Shivangi appealed to US President Joe Biden and the US Congress to intervene and send a message to Canada to protect Canadian Indians, Hindus and thousands of Indian students from the threats.

On concerns of spilling this hatred over to the US, Chicago-based prominent Indian American leader Bharat Barai said, “I doubt it will spill over. We should keep calm but vigilant. Khalistanis represent a very tiny misled minority, instigated by ISI and involved in drug trafficking, human trafficking and other violent criminal activities.” Chief editor of Khalsa Today Sukhi Chahal separated the hateful radicals from Sikhism and said: “As a Sikh, I firmly believe in the teachings of our Gurus, which emphasise the unity of all humanity.” Statements like the one from Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, the chief of the banned outfit Sikhs for Justice, don’t represent true Sikh values. Let’s stand together for harmony and respect among all communities, he said.

On the recent threats to Hindus and Indians, Sri Iyer, editor of the PGurus portal, a US-based media company said: “There is a thin line between freedom of speech and hate speech and Gurpatwant Singh Pannun crossed it when he threatened Hindu Canadians.”

New Delhi:

The latest diplomatic row between India and Canada is not going to impact the ongoing bilateral military engagement and the matter has to be resolved at the political level, Canada’s Deputy Army Chief Major General Peter Scott said on Tuesday.

Scott is leading a Canadian delegation at the Indo-Pacific Army Chiefs’ Conference (IPACC) here that is being attended by military delegations from over 30 countries.

“To the best of my knowledge at this time, that is not going to have an impact on us. We leave the matter at hand to the political level to try and resolve,” he told PTI.

“We are happy to be here, and we do not see the issue clouding matters at this point at all,” Major General Scott said.

The ties between India and Canada came under severe strain following Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s allegations of a “potential” involvement of Indian agents in the killing of Khalistani separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in June.

India has rejected the allegations as “absurd” and “motivated” and expelled a senior Canadian diplomat in a tit-for-tat move to Ottawa’s expulsion of an Indian official over the case.

“This is an issue between both our countries at a political level. And certainly our Prime Minister…he rose at the House of Commons and made a statement requesting India’s cooperation on the independent investigation that is currently ongoing at this time,” the Canadian Army official said.

“Between both of our armies, this is not affecting us. I spoke to your commander of the Army (Army Chief Gen Manoj Pande) last night. We both agreed that this is a political issue and has no interference on our relationship,” he said.

“As two armies, we look for opportunities among the other 30 nations that are currently participating in this conference to find areas where we can cooperate, train together, conduct exercises and operations so that we all can contribute to ensuring peace, stability within the region,” Major General Scott said.

“The way we see right now is that we will continue to cooperate, discuss, and enjoy great forums like this where we can exchange ideas and find solutions to the difficulties facing a lot of the Indo-Pacific nations,” he said.

The Indian Army is hosting the two-day conclave of Indo-Pacific army chiefs to evolve a common strategy to ensure peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region.

In his opening address at the conference, Chief of Army Staff Gen Pande said India’s outlook for the Indo-Pacific emphasises respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity of all nations. 

(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau met with British Columbia’s premier David Eby in his office on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on September 25, 2023.
| Photo Credit: Reuters

The premier of Canada’s British Columbia province, where Sikh extremist Hardeep Singh Nijjar was killed, has said he was not taken into the loop on Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s explosive allegations against India and came to know about it only one hour before they came in the public domain.

Premier David Eby’s comments came as he met Prime Minister Trudeau on Monday, on a day when some Khalistan supporters held demonstrations outside the Indian missions in Vancouver, Ottawa and Toronto.

Tensions flared between India and Canada following Prime Minister Trudeau’s allegations of the “potential” involvement of Indian agents in the killing of Nijjar, 45, outside a gurdwara in Surrey in British Columbia on June 18. India had designated Nijjar as a terrorist in 2020.

India has angrily rejected the allegations as “absurd” and “motivated” and expelled a senior Canadian diplomat in a tit-for-tat move to Ottawa’s expulsion of an Indian official over the case. India last week asked Canada to crack down on terrorists and anti-India elements operating from its soil and suspended visa services for Canadians.

Mr. Eby told CTV News he only learned one hour before the public did about the Prime Minister’s allegation that India may have been involved in the murder.

He said he wants the federal government to share security intelligence with provinces.

“There’s a critical need for provinces to be brought into the loop at an earlier stage,” CTV News quoted Mr. Eby as saying on Monday.

“CSIS (the Canadian Security Intelligence Service), for example, by law is required to only share their intelligence with the federal government, It means that when they brief me – which they did that day – they can share basically what’s in the public domain already, which is not helpful. I can read the newspaper, too,” he said.

Following Mr. Trudeau’s allegations, Mr. Eby said he was deeply disturbed and angered by this information.

“I call, yet again, on the federal government to share all relevant information related to any known ongoing foreign interference & transnational organized crime threats with our provincial authorities & our government, so we may act in coordination and protect those at risk,” he had said.

On Monday, Prime Minister Trudeau met with Mr. Eby.

According to Mr. Trudeau’s office, the two leaders discussed how all governments can continue working together to improve housing supply and affordability for Canadians.

Prime Minister Trudeau and Premier Eby discussed public safety, including federal legislation to strengthen Canada’s bail regime, which was recently passed in the House of Commons. The legislation makes changes to the Criminal Code’s bail regime.

Prime Minister Trudeau and Premier Eby agreed to remain in close contact and to continue working together on shared priorities, it said.

Mr. Trudeau on Friday said that Canada shared with India “many weeks ago” evidence on the killing of Nijjar and wants New Delhi to commit constructively with Ottawa to establish the facts in the “very serious matter.”

When asked about Canada sharing any information in the case with India, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) in New Delhi said: “No specific information has been shared by Canada on this case, either then or before or after. We have, you know, as we have said, or I think we have made very clear, we are willing to look at any specific information.”

Canada’s Defence Minister Bill Blair on Sunday voiced concern over the measures taken by India including the suspension of visa services for Canadians and urged New Delhi to cooperate fully in the investigation of the killing of Nijjar to uncover the truth and work together to resolve it in an appropriate way.

Washington:

Stating that Justin Trudeau’s allegations have led to “greater danger” for Canada than India, former Pentagon official Michael Rubin said that if the United States has to choose between Ottawa and New Delhi, it will surely choose the latter as the relationship is “too important”.

He said that India is far more important strategically than Canada is and Ottawa picking up a fight with India is like “an ant picking up a fight against an elephant”.

While referring to the poor approval ratings of Justin Trudeau, Mr Rubin added that he is not long for the premiership, and the US can rebuild the relationship after he is gone.

“Prime Minister Trudeau I think has made a huge mistake. He has made allegations in a manner which he hasn’t been able to back. Either he was shooting from the hip and he doesn’t have the evidence to support the accusations he made against the government. There is something there, in which case he needs to explain why this government was sheltering a terrorist,” the former Pentagon official said.

Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a designated terrorist in India, was gunned down outside a Gurdwara, in a parking area in Canada’s Surrey, British Columbia on June 18.

“I suspect that the United States doesn’t want to be painted a corner to choose between two friends. But if we have to choose between two friends, increasingly we’re going to choose India on this matter, simply because Nijjar was a terrorist, and India is too important. Our relationship is too important,” Michael Rubin said while speaking to news agency ANI.

“Justin Trudeau probably isn’t long for the Canadian premiership, and then we can rebuild the relationship after he’s gone,” he added.

#WATCH | Washington, DC | On allegations by Canada, Michael Rubin, former Pentagon official and a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute says, “… I suspect that the United States doesn’t want to be pinned in the corner to choose between 2 friends, but if we have to… pic.twitter.com/tlWr6C6p7e

— ANI (@ANI) September 23, 2023

Michael Rubin who is also a fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, where he specializes in Iran, Turkey, and South Asia, said: “As a former consumer of intelligence, I can say that oftentimes the intelligence we see whether it’s a telephone intercept or something else, isn’t as black and white, isn’t as cut and dry. I mean, certainly, that was the case with regard to the Iraq War.”

He further added: “So when you have a situation like this, perhaps Prime Minister Trudeau raised the issue, but there wasn’t necessarily consensus on what he meant. And regardless, let’s not fool ourselves, Nijjar was not simply a plumber, any more than Osama bin Laden was a construction engineer. He had blood on his hands from multiple attacks.”

Responding to the possibility of whether the US will publicly intervene in the matter, Mr Rubin said, “Frankly, there’s a much greater danger for Canada than India. If Canada wants to pick a fight, frankly, at this point, it’s like an ant picking a fight against an elephant and the fact that matter is India is the world’s largest democracy. It’s far more important strategically, arguably than Canada is, especially as concern grows with regard to China and other matters in the Indian Ocean basin, and in the Pacific.”

The India-Canada ties soured further after Canadian PM Justin Trudeau alleged India’s role behind the killing of Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar. This was followed by both countries expelling a senior diplomat in a tit-for-tat move.

However, India has out-rightly denied such allegations calling them ‘absurd’ and ‘motivated’.

Notably, the Canadian PM has failed to present any evidence to back his claims. Trudeau was repeatedly quizzed on the nature of the allegations but stuck to reiterating that there were “credible reasons” to believe that India was linked to the death of Nijjar.

The former Pentagon official further slammed Trudeau and said that Hardeep Singh Nijjar – A khalistani terrorist allegedly killed by his erstwhile comrades – is not a model to use for “human rights” and he was a terrorist involved in multiple attacks.

“Justin Trudeau might want to make this a case of human rights. The fact of that matter is, that Nijjar isn’t a model one wants to use for human rights. Nijjar may have been involved in the assassination of a rival Sikh leader, just a year ago. At the same time, he has blood on his hands through multiple attacks. He entered Canada with a fraudulent passport. And the fact of the matter is this is no Mother Teresa, we are talking about.”

Mr Rubin added that many of the US security community and even from Canadian security understand that Trudeau has gone “too far”.

On being asked if Trudeau converted a domestic political obstacle into a foreign policy issue, the former Pentagon official said that Trudeau was very “short-sighted” and was acting only as a “politician”.

“Yes, I absolutely do think that that is the case. Justin Trudeau was playing domestic Canadian politics because as he struggles in his re-election campaign, many Sikh activists are in crucial swing districts. But again, this isn’t something unique to Canada…I think Justin Trudeau was acting as a politician. He was very short-sighted, and no one should trade their short-term political convenience for the long-term relationship with the world’s largest democracy,” he added.
 

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken addresses members of the press on the sidelines of the 78th United Nations General Assembly at the Lotte Palace Hotel in New York City, U.S., September 22, 2023.
| Photo Credit: Reuters

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the U.S. was “deeply concerned” about allegations that India had a role in the death of Khalistani separatist leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar in British Columbia and that it wanted to see accountability for the incident.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau had told the country’s parliament on Monday that there were reasons to believe agents of the Government of India were involved in killing Mr Nijjar in June this year.

“It would be important that India work with the Canadians on this investigation,” Mr. Blinken told reporters at a press briefing in New York on Friday. “We want to see accountability and it’s important that the investigation run its course and lead to that to that result.”

World leaders and diplomats have gathered in the city for the 78th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA).

The U.S. was not just consulting with the Canadians, but cooperating with them in the investigation, according to the Secretary.

“I think the most productive thing that can happen now is to see this investigation move forward, be completed,” he said adding that he hoped that “our Indian friends” would cooperate.

Directly engaging with India

Questioned on the nature of U.S. engagement with India on the matter, Mr. Blinken did not want to get into specifics, saying instead that the U.S. government had been directly engaging the Indian government on the issue.

Mr. Blinken made the larger point that the U.S. was very vigilant about alleged instances of “transnational repression” and called on countries not to engage in it.

“We are extremely vigilant about any instances of alleged transnational repression, “ he said, adding that the U.S. took it “very, very seriously”.

“And I think it’s important, more broadly, for the international system, that any country that might consider engaging in such acts not to not do so,” he said.

Mr. Trudeau, who was in New York on Thursday, had again stated his allegation, saying India’s alleged role in the killing of a Canadian in Canada was “of the utmost and foundational importance in a country of rule of law, in a world where international rules-based order matters”.