Justin Trudeau using Nijjar's killing for political gain: Ex-Canada MLA
Former British Columbia Solicitor General Kash Heed, in an interview with NDTV, criticized Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau for using the murder of Khalistani terrorist and Canadian citizen Hardeep Singh Nijjar for political advantage. While calling out Trudeau and the Liberal Party for accusing India of involvement in Nijjar's killing, Heed alleged that the Canadian PM is trying to dodge his current political storm by exploiting the matter.
Why does this story matter?
Relations between India and Canada have deteriorated following the Canadian PM's allegation on September 18 that the Indian government played a role in Nijjar's killing on Canadian soil in June. The charges triggered a massive diplomatic row between New Delhi and Ottawa, following which both nations expelled diplomats. Furthermore, India also decided to suspend visa services for Canadian citizens last week as relations plummeted to an all-time low.
Trudeau is in turmoil right now: Ex-Canada MLA
In the interview, the Richmond City councilor and former police chief stated, "He (Trudeau) is in turmoil right now, he is looking for some kind of out." "This is not the out that he should be utilizing, trying to bring back his political credibility, because what has happened is that political credibility is waning at a very rapid pace," Heed further added.
Heed suggests political motive behind Trudeau's claims
Speaking on whether allegations of India's involvement in Nijjar's death were due to the Trudeau government's dependence on MP Jagmeet Singh's New Democratic Party, Heed stated, "I believe it's a domestic political calculation." "I believe it's the wrong political calculation, because you can't pull the wool over the elector in Canada." "This PM, his party is in significant trouble right now, but you cannot use a very serious crime like this to try and get out of the political mud."
Heed questions evidence behind Trudeau's allegations
Heed also expressed his suspicions over the evidence that Trudeau claimed Ottawa shared with India in Nijjar's death weeks ago. He questioned whether it is substantial proof that can lead to accusations that the prime minister of Canada has made. Speaking from his experience during his time with the police force, the former Canadian MLA revealed that when dealing with such high-level killings, a lot of information gets accumulated, and not everything is necessarily true.
Jaishankar, Blinken to meet today; Canada-India row on agenda: Report
Separately, Indian External Affairs Minister (EAM) S Jaishankar is set to meet United States (US) Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Thursday amid the diplomatic uproar between India and Canada. Although not many details are out regarding the agenda of the meeting between Jaishankar and Blinken, news agency PTI reported that the ongoing row between Ottawa and New Delhi will come up prominently during the talks.
