After the United States alleged that it had foiled an assassination attempt against a Sikh separatist on American soil, Canada has asked India to cooperate in an investigation into the murder of Khalistani leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar. Speaking on the US charges, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said that the latest charges have underscored what Canada has been talking about from the very beginning, and now India needs to take this seriously.
"The news coming out of the United States further underscores what we've been talking about from the very beginning, which is that India needs to take this seriously," Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was quoted as saying by news agency Reuters. On Wednesday, an Indian national was charged by federal prosecutors in connection with his participation in a foiled plot to assassinate a Sikh separatist on American soil.
The US Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Matthew G. Olsen, said that Nikhil Gupta has been charged with murder-for-hire, which carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison, and conspiracy to commit murder-for-hire, which carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison.
The charges levied by the US came two months after the Canadian Prime Minister alleged India's involvement in the murder of Khalistani leader Nijjar, who was shot dead outside a gurdwara in Surrey, British Columbia.
Earlier, Indian High Commissioner to Canada Sanjay Kumar Verma said that India was "convicted" even before the investigation into the killing of Khalistani separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar was completed. In an interview with Canada's CTV News, Verma asserted that India was "absolutely" and "decidedly" not involved in the killing of Nijjar, which has sparked a diplomatic row between New Delhi and Ottawa.
On being asked why India was not cooperating with Canada in the probe, Verma said, "Even without an investigation being concluded, India was convicted. Is that the rule of law?"
Explaining how India was "convicted" in the matter, Verma said, "Because India was asked to cooperate. And if you look at the typical criminal terminology, when someone asks us to cooperate, it means that you have already been convicted, and you better cooperate. So we took it in a very different interpretation."