<p>New Delhi: India and Canada on Thursday announced the appointment of envoys to be posted in each other’s capitals, signalling intent to mend the ties after the bilateral relations hit a new low over the killing of a Khalistani Sikh terrorist in the North American country in June 2023.</p><p>New Delhi appointed Dinesh K Patnaik, who joined the Indian Foreign Service in 1990, as India’s new High Commissioner to Canada. Patnaik is currently posted as India’s ambassador to Spain. Ottawa, on the other hand, appointed Christopher Cooter as the new High Commissioner of Canada in India.</p>.Looking at strengthening partnership with Canada: India.<p>India and Canada on Wednesday agreed to respect each other’s concerns and sensitivities as they moved to rebuild the bilateral relationship, which was wrecked by the murder of a fugitive Khalistani Sikh extremist in the North American nation exactly two years ago.</p><p>Narendra Modi and Mark Carney, the prime ministers of India and Canada, had on June 18 this year agreed to take “calibrated and constructive steps to restore stability in the relationship”, beginning with the early return of Indian and Canadian High Commissioners to Ottawa and New Delhi, respectively. </p><p>New Delhi had in October 2024 withdrawn its then-envoy to Ottawa, Sanjay Kumar Verma, and his five colleagues, after they had been accused of being involved in the June 18, 2023, killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, the fugitive ‘commander’ of the Khalistan Tiger Force, at the parking lot of a gurdwara in Surrey in the British Columbia province of Canada. </p><p>India had rejected Canada’s request to waive the immunity of its diplomats and make them available for questioning by police. New Delhi had retaliated by expelling Canada’s six diplomats from India, including acting High Commissioner Stewart Wheeler. </p><p>Carney’s predecessor, Justin Trudeau, in September 2023, had alleged that agents of the Government of India had been involved in the killing of Nijjar. New Delhi had refuted the allegation, which had, however, brought India-Canada relations to a new low over the past couple of years. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police had on October 14, 2024, publicly accused the agents of the Government of India of orchestrating criminal activities in Canada.</p><p>Patnaik is expected to take up his new assignment as India’s envoy to Canada shortly, the Ministry of External Affairs said in a statement issued in New Delhi.</p><p>“The appointment of a new High Commissioner reflects Canada’s step-by-step approach to deepening diplomatic engagement and advancing bilateral cooperation with India,” Canada’s foreign minister, Anita Anand, said on Thursday. “This is an important development toward restoring services for Canadians while strengthening the bilateral relationship to support Canada’s economy.”</p>
<p>New Delhi: India and Canada on Thursday announced the appointment of envoys to be posted in each other’s capitals, signalling intent to mend the ties after the bilateral relations hit a new low over the killing of a Khalistani Sikh terrorist in the North American country in June 2023.</p><p>New Delhi appointed Dinesh K Patnaik, who joined the Indian Foreign Service in 1990, as India’s new High Commissioner to Canada. Patnaik is currently posted as India’s ambassador to Spain. Ottawa, on the other hand, appointed Christopher Cooter as the new High Commissioner of Canada in India.</p>.Looking at strengthening partnership with Canada: India.<p>India and Canada on Wednesday agreed to respect each other’s concerns and sensitivities as they moved to rebuild the bilateral relationship, which was wrecked by the murder of a fugitive Khalistani Sikh extremist in the North American nation exactly two years ago.</p><p>Narendra Modi and Mark Carney, the prime ministers of India and Canada, had on June 18 this year agreed to take “calibrated and constructive steps to restore stability in the relationship”, beginning with the early return of Indian and Canadian High Commissioners to Ottawa and New Delhi, respectively. </p><p>New Delhi had in October 2024 withdrawn its then-envoy to Ottawa, Sanjay Kumar Verma, and his five colleagues, after they had been accused of being involved in the June 18, 2023, killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, the fugitive ‘commander’ of the Khalistan Tiger Force, at the parking lot of a gurdwara in Surrey in the British Columbia province of Canada. </p><p>India had rejected Canada’s request to waive the immunity of its diplomats and make them available for questioning by police. New Delhi had retaliated by expelling Canada’s six diplomats from India, including acting High Commissioner Stewart Wheeler. </p><p>Carney’s predecessor, Justin Trudeau, in September 2023, had alleged that agents of the Government of India had been involved in the killing of Nijjar. New Delhi had refuted the allegation, which had, however, brought India-Canada relations to a new low over the past couple of years. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police had on October 14, 2024, publicly accused the agents of the Government of India of orchestrating criminal activities in Canada.</p><p>Patnaik is expected to take up his new assignment as India’s envoy to Canada shortly, the Ministry of External Affairs said in a statement issued in New Delhi.</p><p>“The appointment of a new High Commissioner reflects Canada’s step-by-step approach to deepening diplomatic engagement and advancing bilateral cooperation with India,” Canada’s foreign minister, Anita Anand, said on Thursday. “This is an important development toward restoring services for Canadians while strengthening the bilateral relationship to support Canada’s economy.”</p>
