Trudeau’s anti-India stance despicable as pro-Khalistan ally targets Modi, SFJ threatens Hindu-Canadians

Mr Xiao Tudou’s (‘Little Potato’ in Mandarin) life in the last few years has been a roller coaster ride from éclat to opprobrium. From catching Anna Wintour’s gaze for a Vogue splash in January 2016 as the “new young face of Canadian politics” to the Toronto Sun’s ignominious September headline ‘THIS WAY OUT’—‘Trudeau finds he has few friends at G20 summit in India’—Justin Trudeau has precariously descended from being the media’s poster boy to a punching bag. The coverage of Vogue and Toronto Sunday was a glaring contrast. The American fashion and lifestyle mag’s photos snapped Canada’s then-First Couple in a casual, authentic display of affection, not hankering for public statement in a formal or fabricated pose. As Canada’s Prime Minister (PM) held his now-estranged partner Sophie Grégoire, in a figure-hugging, blue gold lace dress, by the waist, the most swoon-worthy politician was set to mesmerise women with his cherubic smile and suaveness. Eight years later, the ‘wheel of time’—ironically symbolised by the Konark Sun Temple’s wheel replica at the New Delhi G20 Summit—careened to negative publicity for Trudeau. The Canadian tabloid displayed an awkward page one snap. A smiling Narendra Modi was seen shaking Trudeau’s right hand and showing him the way to the Bharat Mandapam on the left with his counterpart gawkily posing for the shutterbugs in front. Trudeau is losing global respect and standing. Two consecutive humiliations at G20 summits show how he has transformed from a young slick politician and a global heartthrob with gravitas into a lightweight. Chinese President Xi Jinping rebuked Trudeau at the November 2022 Bali G20 Summit in Indonesia. “Everything we discuss has been leaked to the paper; that’s inappropriate,” Xi said referring to their previous conversation on the summit’s sidelines about Chinese interference in Canada, especially the 2019 federal election. At the New Delhi summit, Trudeau skipped the G20 dinner without a reason. Besides his jinxed CC 150 Polaris aircraft, the ‘Flying Taj Mahal’, stranded in New Delhi and his G20 gaffes, Canada’s hoodoo continued as Modi snubbed him for sheltering Khalistani extremists. India rejected Trudeau’s request for a bilateral meeting and Modi rebuffed him for Khalistani extremism in Canada and threats of violence against Indian diplomats. Trudeau’s peculiar G20 behaviour continued. While G20 leaders paid tributes to Mahatma Gandhi, Modi tried to grasp his hand but he pulled back. He refused India’s offer of flying him back on IAF One following the CC 150 Polaris glitch. He also refused to stay at the presidential suite at Lalit Hotel and preferred a regular room. Canada’s main Opposition leader Pierre Poilievre mocked Trudeau on X: “Putting partisanship aside, no one likes to see a Canadian prime minister repeatedly humiliated & trampled upon by the rest of the world.” https://twitter.com/PierrePoilievre/status/1700949791168172267?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1700949791168172267%7Ctwgr%5E97fd5779fd1c3c52ea4943a02503002e548faf80%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.hindustantimes.com%2Fworld-news%2Frepeatedly-humiliated-and-trampled-upon-canadian-oppn-leader-mocks-trudeaus-g20-visit-101694422822553.html Trudeau’s intriguing accusation against India Trudeau’s sudden backlash at India accusing “agents of the Indian government” of gunning down Khalistan Tiger Force (KTF) chief and Canadian citizen Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a wanted terrorist in India, at the parking lot of Surrey’s Guru Nanak Gurdwara Sahib in June is intriguing. “Canadian security agencies have been actively pursuing credible allegations of a potential link between agents of the government of India and the killing of a Canadian citizen, Hardeep Singh Nijjar,” he told the House of Commons on 18 September. “Any involvement of a foreign government in the killing of a Canadian citizen on Canadian soil is an unacceptable violation of our sovereignty,” he added. A week before Trudeau’s unsubstantiated allegations, Shuvaloy ‘Shuv’ Majumdar, a Conservative Party of Canada MP from Calgary Heritage, made a prophetic remark about his impending allegation against India. “The countdown begins now on how long it takes for the Trudeau government, Liberal insiders, and the woke establishment to vilify the world’s largest democracy,” he tweeted on 11 September referring to the Toronto Sunday report. https://twitter.com/shuvmajumdar/status/1701029054361583946?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1701029054361583946%7Ctwgr%5Ee909246421e5f793cfadb5ef0e670ad3444e3709%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.republicworld.com%2Fworld-news%2Frest-of-the-world-news%2Ftrudeaus-allegation-against-india-a-planned-move-canadian-mps-forecast-raises-question-articleshow.html Strangely, Trudeau didn’t raise Nijjar’s murder with Modi in New Delhi but only after returning humiliated. Sikhs of America founder-chairman Jesse Singh too questioned the accusation’s timing. At an event hosted by Washington’s Hudson Institute think tank this week, he said, “It’s just something that he said is a ‘credible allegation’ with no proof at all.” Poilievre also slammed the Canadian PM for his proofless accusation. “I think the prime minister needs to come clean with all the facts. We need to know all the evidence possible so that Canadians can make judgments on that. We need to have the evidence that drew that allowed the prime minister to come to the conclusions,” he said. The accusation is apparently Trudeau’s vendetta against India following Modi’s tough-talking, and the appeasement of Canada’s Sikh vote bank. Hub of Khalistanis, gangsters Canada has become a haven for Khalistani terrorists and sympathisers and their anti-India propaganda. Canada allowed Nijjar to stay despite his counterfeit passport, which mentioned him as ‘Ravi Sharma’, seeking asylum and alleging persecution in India. Announcing a Rs 10 lakh reward on Nijjar in July 2022, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) said in a release: “Hardeep Singh Nijjar is wanted … in the NIA case in the conspiracy hatched by Khalistan Tiger Force operating under Nijjar to kill a Hindu priest at Jalandhar.” In February, the Home Ministry notified KTF as a terrorist organisation under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act. “It is a militant outfit and it aims to revive terrorism in Punjab and challenges the territorial integrity, unity, national security and sovereignty of India and promotes various acts of terrorism, including targeted killings in Punjab,” the ministry said. In 2013-14, Nijjar allegedly met Jagtar Singh Tara, who had escaped from an Indian jail while serving a life sentence for his involvement in former Punjab chief minister Beant Singh’s assassination, in Pakistan. Tara was rearrested in Thailand in 2015. Nijjar was also associated with the banned separatist organisation Sikhs For Justice (SFJ). Nijjar was also friendly with 1981 Indian Airlines flight co-hijacker Gajinder Singh, who is in Pakistan. “Hardeep Singh Nijjar was a dedicated Khalistani until the end; he was a true Khalistani at heart,” Singh said after Nijjar’s murder. What makes Nijjar’s murder and Trudeau’s accusation more mysterious is the KTF chief’s regular meetings with Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) officers since February. Nijjar’s son Balraj Singh Nijjar told Canada’s CTV News that his father met CSIS officers “once or twice a week”, including one or two days before his murder. Balraj was present at a 2022 meeting where the Royal Canadian Mounted Police warned Nijjar about threats to his life and advised to “stay at home”. Why were Canadian intelligence officers regularly meeting a wanted terrorist who entered Canada using a fake passport? The answer was buried with Nijjar’s elimination. According to Indian officials, Ottawa has ignored several dossiers handed over by New Delhi requesting the deportation of wanted terrorists and gangsters. Nine pro-Khalistani organisations, including KTF, SFJ and Babbar Khalsa International (BKI), are based in Canada. As per officials, eight individuals involved in terrorism and as many gangsters in collusion with the Inter-Services Intelligence are in Canada. Canada continues to shelter terrorists like Gurpreet Singh, Gurwant Singh, who faces an Interpol Red Corner Notice, Gurwant Singh Bath, Bhagat Singh Brar, Moninder Singh Bual and Satinder Pal Singh Gill. The gangsters include Satinderjit Singh Brar, alias Goldy Brar, who took responsibility for the murder of Punjabi singer Sidhu Moose Wala, and Arshdeep Singh, alias Arsh Dalla, wanted in 16 criminal cases. Coincidentally, Dalla claimed responsibility for the murder of Congress leader Baljinder Singh Balli in Punjab’s Ajitwal village on the day of Trudeau’s accusation. Giving refuge to Khalistani terrorists and treating them kids gloves has been Canada’s policy for decades. The mid-air bombing of the Toronto-Mumbai Air India Flight 182, Emperor Kanishka, by Khalistani terrorists on 23 June, 1985, to avenge the 1984 Operation Blue Star was the earliest instance. The explosion killed all the 329 passengers, including 268 Canadians—mostly of Indian origin—and the crew. Ironically, Trudeau’s father, Pierre Trudeau, was helming Canada in 1982 when then-PM Indira Gandhi requested the extradition of BKI chief and the future mastermind of the Kanishka bombing, Talwinder Singh Parmar, but he refused. The Canada-based mastermind plotted the deadliest act of aviation terrorism before 9/11. Even after the terror attack, Canada acquitted co-accused Ripudaman Malik and Ajaib Singh Bagri. Silence on Khalistanis and politics of appeasement Trudeau’s hypocrisy on anti-India propaganda and actions in Canada and silence on the pretext of “ freedom of speech” is nauseating. After Modi raised the issue of Khalistani extremism with Trudeau on the G20 summit sidelines, he told the media, “Canada will always defend freedom of expression, freedom of conscience and freedom of peaceful protest.” Trudeau has been silent every time Khalistani elements organised anti-India protests or events. Shockingly, the SFJ organised an anti-India referendum at the Surrey Gurudwara in the presence of the organisation’s founder Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, who bashed India, on the day of the Modi-Trudeau talks. In July, when India summoned the Canadian envoy in New Delhi after pro-Khalistan outfits organised a tableau recreating Indira Gandhi’s assassination by her Sikh bodyguards in Brampton, Trudeau repeated his hackneyed and pathetic “freedom of expression” line. Earlier that month, Khalistani pamphlets threatening Indian diplomats, including high commissioner Sanjay Kumar Verma, and alleging that India eliminated Nijjar were circulated. All Trudeau said was Canada always took “serious action” against terrorism. In June, a pro-Khalistan rally displayed posters glorifying Parmar as ‘Shaheed Bhai Talwinder Parmar’. During Trudeau’s 2018 India visit, convicted former terrorist Jaspal Atwal was invited to a dinner organised for him at the Canadian High Commission. Trudeau’s worst step in sympathising with Canada-based terrorist outfits was his somersault after which the reference to Sikh extremism was removed from the ‘ 2018 Public Report on the Terrorism Threat to Canada’. The Canadian government’s Public Safety Canada had listed BKI and the International Sikh Youth Federation (ISYF) as terrorist entities along with Al Qaeda, AQAP, AQIS, AQIM, Islamic State, ISKP, JeM, HuM, Hizbul Mujahideen, Indian Mujahideen, Let, Taliban, TTP and several others. The original report, submitted on 11 December 2018, specifically mentioned that “Sikh (Khalistani) extremism” remains a matter of concern. “… some Canadians continue to support these extremist groups, including through financing”. The report admitted that Canada’s Sikh extremists intend to create Khalistan. “Some individuals in Canada continue to support Sikh (Khalistani) extremist ideologies and movements. This political movement aims to create an independent homeland for Sikhs called Khalistan in India.” The Kanishka bombing “by Khalistani terrorists remains the deadliest terrorist plot ever launched in Canada” and “support for the extreme ideologies of such groups remains”, it stated. The report said that BKI and ISYF “have been identified as being associated with terrorism and remain listed terrorist entities under the Criminal Code”. On 14 December, the Canadian government, however, asked officials to make “appropriate changes to the language used throughout the government to describe extremism”. Then-minister of public safety and emergency preparedness Ralph Goodale said, “The terms ‘Sikh’, ‘Shia’ and ‘Sunni’, among others, were used to describe types of extremism in the 2018 Public Report on the Terrorist Threat to Canada. I am confident the terminology used in this report was never intended to encompass or malign entire religions. Words matter. We must never equate any one community or entire religion with extremism.” The April 2019 updated report, obviously at Trudeau’s insistence, removed the words ‘Sikh’ and ‘Khalistan’ from the sentence “extremists who support violent means to establish an independent state within India”. Trudeau has been courting Canadian Sikhs, who are 2.1 per cent, or 7.71 lakh, of the population for years to stick to power. In the 2021 snap federal election, after his Liberal Party of Canada secured only 160 seats, falling short of the 170 majority mark, Trudeau struck an alliance with pro-Khalistan Jagmeet Singh-led New Democratic Party (NDP), which bagged 25 seats. Similarly, the NDP’s 24 seats rescued Trudeau in his second general election in 2019, when the Liberals won only 157. Singh has been vocal about Khalistan. In June 2015, he participated in a Khalistani rally held in San Francisco to venerate slain terrorist Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale, slam India and demand Khalistan. Singh spoke on a stage featuring a large Bhindranwale poster, The Globe and Mail reported. Trudeau was aware of Singh’s pro-Khalistan and anti-India stance but preferred to be mum. Four years later, Singh helped him in forming his second government. Trudeau’s baseless accusation has egged on Khalistanis. A day after Trudeau’s statement, Singh vowed to hold “Modi accountable” for Nijjar’s murder. “Today we learned of allegations that agents of the Indian Government murdered Hardeep Singh Nijjar—a Canadian killed on Canadian soil. To all Canadians, this is my vow. I will leave no stone unturned in the pursuit of justice, including holding Narendra Modi accountable,” he tweeted. https://twitter.com/theJagmeetSingh/status/1703884163114238163?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1703884163114238163%7Ctwgr%5E9382ac0b15211b6dfd58799ae651a9de82c2d745%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.livemint.com%2Fnews%2Findia%2Fwill-hold-narendra-modi-accountable-canadas-sikh-mp-vows-to-get-justice-for-khalistani-terrorist-hardeep-nijjar-11695136037062.html Two days later, Pannun threatened Indian-origin Hindus in Canada and asked them to go to India. “Indo-Hindu leave Canada; go to India. You not only support India but you are also supporting the suppression of speech and expression of pro-Khalistan Sikhs,” Pannun, a designated terrorist in India, said in a viral video. The Liberals haven’t protested Trudeau’s accusation, which has pushed India-Canada ties to the brink, but one of his party lawmakers said that Pannun is “trying to provoke the Hindu-Canadians to react and divide the Hindu and Sikh communities in Canada”. Nepean House of Commons member Chandra Arya tweeted: “I have heard from many Hindu-Canadians who are fearful after this targeted attack. Please report any incident of Hinduphobia to your local law enforcement agencies.” https://twitter.com/AryaCanada/status/1704587560847090171 “Vast majority of our Canadian Sikh brothers and sisters do not support Khalistan movement,” he wrote, adding Pannun’s threat is a “further escalation of the recent attacks on Hindu temples and public celebration of the assassination of Hindu Prime Minister Indira Gandhi by terrorists”. Without naming Trudeau, Arya wrote: “I can’t understand how glorification of terrorism or a hate crime targeting a religious group is allowed in the name of freedom of speech and expression.” Trudeau’s pathetic defence of Khalistanis, harbouring terrorists and his accusation against India demands a question: what if India starts sheltering Quebec separatists and turns a blind eye to their anti-Canada activities on its soil? The writer is a freelance journalist with two decades of experience and comments primarily on foreign affairs. Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely those of the writer. They do not necessarily reflect Firstpost_’s views._ Read all the  Latest News,  Trending News,  Cricket News,  Bollywood News, India News and  Entertainment News here. Follow us on  Facebook,  Twitter and  Instagram.