Canada already shared evidence on Nijjar's killing with India: Trudeau
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau reiterated his claims that Indian government agents were involved in the killing of Khalistani leader and Canadian citizen Hardeep Singh Nijjar on Friday (local time). He also claimed that Ottawa had already shared evidence with India regarding it weeks ago. Trudeau's fresh charge came while addressing a joint media conference with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Why does this story matter?
Canada and India's diplomatic relations have plummeted to an all-time low after Trudeau alleged New Delhi's involvement on Monday in the killing of the Khalistani leader in June. India has denied the claims and called the allegations politically motivated and baseless. Amid the row, both nations expelled each other's diplomats, and India suspended visa services for Canadians on Thursday.
We are there to work constructively with India: Trudeau
"In regards to India, Canada has shared the credible allegations that I talked about on Monday. With India, we did that many weeks ago," news agency ANI quoted the Canadian PM as saying. "We are there to work constructively with India and we hope that they engage with us so that we can get to the bottom of this very serious matter," Trudeau added.
You can watch Trudeau's remarks here
Trudeau earlier urged India to cooperate in Nijjar murder probe
On Thursday, the Canadian PM also urged New Delhi to cooperate in the probe regarding the murder of Nijjar. "There is no question, India is a country of growing importance and a country that we need to continue to work with not just in a region but around the world, and we are not looking to provoke or cause problems," he stated. According to CBC News, Canada's allegations are based on "human and signals intelligence" gathered in a months-long investigation.
Canadian government's findings in Nijjar murder probe
The report also claimed that the intelligence includes communications involving Indian diplomats in Canada and other Indian officials. The intelligence was not only gathered by Canada but also provided by an unnamed member of the Five Eyes intelligence alliance, it added. Furthermore, the report said that no Indian officials had denied the claims of New Delhi's role in Nijjar's murder when asked behind closed doors.