New Delhi:
Canada has withdrawn its standard operating procedure for additional testing of travelers traveling to India, days after the measure was put in place “out of an abundance of caution.”
The revised measure, which comes in response to deteriorating relations between India and Canada, mandates no additional testing for travelers to India.
Canada’s Transport Minister Anita Anand earlier said on Monday that “temporary additional security screening measures” could cause some delays for passengers.
The move comes after Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau accused “operatives” in Delhi of being involved in the murder of Khalistani terrorist and Canadian citizen Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Vancouver. At the same time, India-Canada relations are in the midst of a diplomatic crisis. He claimed in June last year that “credible information” had been shared with intelligence partners, including the United States.
The Canadian government expelled the Indian diplomat, and in retaliation, New Delhi expelled Canada’s Chargé d’Affaires Stewart Wheeler and five other diplomats.
“I think it’s clear that the Indian government made a fundamental mistake in thinking that it could support criminal acts against Canadians here on Canadian soil, whether it was murder, extortion or other acts of violence,” Trudeau said. Either way, it is completely unacceptable.” Said.
Nijjar, the leader of the banned terrorist organization Khalistan Tiger Force, was on Delhi’s list of “most wanted” terrorists for multiple crimes, including the murder of a Hindu priest in Punjab. The anti-terror agency NIA had offered a reward of Rs 1 million for information leading to his arrest.
External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal on Thursday said a Canadian report claiming Prime Minister Narendra Modi was aware of the plot to kill Sikh separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar was a “smear campaign” . The next day, the Canadian government denounced the Globe and Mail report as “speculative and inaccurate.”
“On October 14, due to serious and continuing threats to public safety, RCMP and officials took the unusual step of publicly charging serious criminal acts committed in Canada by agents of the Indian government. “The Government of Canada has not stated, nor is it aware of any evidence linking Prime Minister Modi, Minister Jaishankar, or NSA Doval to any serious criminal activity within Canada,” the statement said.
