JOIN USIndia summons Canada envoy after Trudeau backs farmers' protest
The government on Friday summoned the High Commissioner of Canada in New Delhi and warned him about the serious damage the bilateral relations could suffer if Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and other leaders of the North American nation continued to make comments on agitation by the farmers in India.
Ottawa’s envoy to New Delhi, Nadir Patel, was summoned to the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), where senior officials served him a démarche, conveying that the comments made by Prime Minister and other ministers of the Canadian Government on the protest by farmers “constitute an unacceptable interference in internal affairs” of India.
Trudeau recently expressed concerns over protests by thousands of farmers in India, subtly nudging Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government in New Delhi to resolve the issue through dialogue. New Delhi immediately reacted to the statement by the Prime Minister of Canada, calling it “unwarranted”.
Not only Trudeau but Sikh ministers in the Canadian Government – Defence Minister Harjit Singh Sajjan, Minister for Innovation, Science and Industry Navdeep Singh Bains and Minister for Diversity and Inclusion Bardish Chagger – also tweeted comments on police action against the farmers agitating against the new agricultural laws introduced by the Modi Government in India. They all expressed concern and stressed the importance of allowing protests in democracies.
New Delhi on Friday conveyed to Ottawa that such comments if continued, “would have a seriously damaging impact on ties between India and Canada”.
Trudeau, however, ignored protests from New Delhi and justified his comment expressing concern over protest by farmers in India. He reiterated on Friday that Canada would always stand up for the right of peaceful protest and human rights anywhere around the world. He was responding to a journalist who asked for his reaction to New Delhi's warning about the adverse impact of his comment on India-Canada relations. The Canadian Prime Minister also said that he was pleased to see moves towards de-escalation and dialogue between the agitating farmers and the Government of India.
The MEA officials also conveyed to Ottawa’s envoy to New Delhi that the comments by the Prime Minister and other ministers of Canada had “encouraged gatherings of extremist activities” in front of the High Commission and consulates of India in Canada. It also triggered concerns in New Delhi over safety and security of the diplomats and consular officials of India in Canada. “We expect the Canadian Government to ensure the fullest security of Indian diplomatic personnel and its political leaders to refrain from pronouncements that legitimize extremist activism,” the MEA stated in a press release issued in New Delhi later.
Trudeau’s visit to New Delhi in February 2018 had been overshadowed by the perception that Ottawa had done very little to address New Delhi's concerns over continued anti-India activities by radical pro-Khalistani elements among the Sikhs in Canada. The invitation to Jaspal Atwal, a convicted assassin and a former activist of the now-outlawed International Sikh Youth Federation, to a reception hosted by Ottawa's envoy to New Delhi during the visit of the Canadian Prime Minister had irked India.
The majority of the farmers protesting against the new agricultural laws enacted by the Modi Government are Sikhs from Punjab and Haryana. The police used barricades and water cannons to stop them from entering Delhi. With the numbers of agitators camping at the entry points to the national capital swelling, the government led by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) at the Centre started talks with the leaders of the protesters.
The talks, however, remained inconclusive so far.
Nearly 500,000 Sikhs account for about 1.4% of the total population of Canada, but the House of Commons or the lower house of the national parliament of the North American nation now has 18 members from the community – more than even the number in the Lok Sabha of India.