The K word has long been associated with Kashmir for India in geopolitics and diplomacy, but now another K - Khalistan - has emerged as vastly contentious, souring ties between India and Canada. Canada publicly expelled a senior Indian official amid allegations of Indian government involvement in the killing of Khalistani leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar. This move is unusual, as such expulsions are typically discreet. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau mentioned "credible allegations" linking Indian government agents to Nijjar's killing. India dismissed these claims as "absurd," asserting they aimed to divert attention from Khalistani terrorists sheltered in Canada who threaten India's sovereignty and expelled a top Canadian diplomat. New Delhi's decision reflected its "growing concern at the interference of Canadian diplomats in our internal matters and their involvement in anti-India activities", the foreign ministry said in a statement.
#Canada #CanadianPrimeminister #HardeepSinghNijjar #EmperorKanishkaCrash #KanishkaCrash #AirIndiaFlight182Crash #KhalistanTerrorAct #KhalistaniTerror #CanadaExpelsIndianDiplomat #MelanieJoly #IndianDiplomatExpelled #TrudeauOnNijjar #KhalistanTerrorist #Khalistan
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#Canada #CanadianPrimeminister #HardeepSinghNijjar #EmperorKanishkaCrash #KanishkaCrash #AirIndiaFlight182Crash #KhalistanTerrorAct #KhalistaniTerror #CanadaExpelsIndianDiplomat #MelanieJoly #IndianDiplomatExpelled #TrudeauOnNijjar #KhalistanTerrorist #Khalistan
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NewsTranscript
00:00 The K word has long been associated with Kashmir for India in geopolitics and diplomacy, but
00:06 now another K, Khalistan, has emerged as vastly contentious, souring ties between India and
00:12 Canada.
00:14 Canada publicly expelled a senior Indian official amid allegations of Indian government involvement
00:19 in the killing of Khalistani leader Harbib Singh Nijjar.
00:23 The move is unusual as such expulsions are typically discreet.
00:28 Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau mentioned credible allegations linking Indian government's
00:33 agents to Nijjar's killing.
00:53 India dismissed these claims as absurd, asserting they aimed to divert attention from Khalistani
00:58 terrorists sheltered in Canada who threatened India's sovereignty and expelled a top Canadian
01:03 diplomat.
01:04 "New Delhi's decision reflected its growing concern at the interference of Canadian diplomats
01:10 in our internal matters and their involvement in anti-India activities," the foreign ministry
01:14 said in a statement.
01:19 However the fractious relationship between India and Canada goes back to nearly 45 years.
01:24 As the Khalistan movement in Punjab was gaining prominence, many Sikhs sought refugee status
01:28 in Canada, citing political persecution.
01:31 Suddenly there was an influx of Khalistanis into a country that did little to curb their
01:35 separatism because of the poor relationship.
01:38 Among those who made their base in Canada was Talwinder Singh Parmar, considered the
01:42 mastermind of the terrorist bombing of Air India Flight 182, the Kanishk.
01:47 Let us look back in history and understand what exactly happened and how Khalistanis
01:51 were involved in the act of terror.
01:54 The Air India Flight 182 took off from Canada's Toronto to India's Mumbai on June 23, 1985.
02:00 It was a Boeing 747 plane named Emperor Kanishk after the ancient Indian emperor of the Kushan
02:05 dynasty.
02:06 The plane took off from Toronto, stopped at Montreal in Canada and then proceeded to London
02:11 from where it would have continued to Mumbai.
02:13 But the plane never reached London.
02:15 It exploded in the air off the coast of Ireland, killing all 329 passengers and crew on board.
02:22 It is considered the worst air disaster associated with Canada.
02:26 So how was Emperor Kanishk bombed?
02:29 No warning or emergency calls were issued by Air India Flight 182 as it exploded within
02:34 45 minutes of taking off from Canada's Montreal.
02:37 As the plane disappeared off the radar screens, London airport authorities dispatched rescue
02:42 crews but no survivors could be found.
02:45 Only 131 bodies out of 329 people in the plane were recovered from the scene.
02:50 The bomb was located in a suitcase in the plane.
02:52 A person named Manjeet Singh got a suitcase transferred to Air India Flight 182 which
02:57 adds that Singh was not on the flight when it took off.
03:01 The bombers had planned to bomb another Air India plane that day but that bombing failed
03:06 because of human error.
03:07 The second bomb exploded in Japan's Tokyo airport killing two baggage handlers.
03:11 The original plan was to bomb the Air India Flight 301 to Bangkok in Thailand.
03:17 What role did the Khalistanis play in the bombing?
03:20 The cause of the crash was not immediately known but airline officials suspected Sikh
03:24 extremists of planting a bomb on the aircraft as in the early 1980s, India was embroiled
03:29 in violent civil unrest between Sikh and Hindu factions.
03:32 The Canadian authorities further understood that the bombings were planned and organised
03:36 in Canada.
03:38 The Government of India had appointed Kirpal Commission to investigate the bombing.
03:41 It was headed by Justice B.N.
03:43 Kirpal.
03:44 Additionally, the CBI also carried out an investigation.
03:47 Despite being the worst act of terror in Canada and the worst air disaster, only one man Inderjeet
03:52 Singh Riyadh was convicted and that too decades after the bombing.
03:55 The mastermind Parmar was never convicted.
03:58 He was killed in 1992 by Punjab police when he returned to India.
04:01 Two other suspects Ripudaman Singh Malik and Ajayab Singh Bagri were arrested in 2000 but
04:06 they were acquitted on insufficient evidence in 2005.
04:10 There have been several instances in Canada of Parmar and Bhimonwale's posters at Gurdwaras
04:15 and events where the two are hailed as martyrs.
04:19 The Khalistan movement may have died in India in the late 1990s but it survived in Canada,
04:24 particularly in some Gurdwaras controlled by radicals.
04:27 However, the true rejuvenation occurred after Justin Trudeau swept into power after the
04:31 2015 federal elections in Canada.
04:34 The Trudeau government, at least within the senior ranks of its security officials, recognised
04:38 the Khalistan problem especially after it caused the PM to suffer from a disastrous
04:42 visit to India in February 2018.
04:45 Canada's openness has also been leveraged by SFJ for its so-called Khalistan referendum.
04:50 Originally planned for 2020, the results for the separatist referendum will now only be
04:54 released in 2025, according to SFJ's legal counsel, Gurpatwant Pannu.
04:59 However, each time Canada has attempted to renew relations with India, as with its Indo-Pacific
05:04 strategy released in November last year describing India as a critical partner, Khalistani activity
05:09 has undermined ties.
05:11 Canada's Prime Minister's validation of SFJ's acquisition of India, being behind
05:15 Nijja's killing, will embolden such elements.
05:18 After the expulsion of an Indian diplomat, the secessionist group is already demanding
05:22 that India's High Commissioner to Ottawa be expelled.
05:25 The outcome of the investigation is awaited as it is now being led by the Royal Canadian
05:29 Mounted Police or RCMP.
05:31 But almost certainly, Trudeau's statement on Monday could ensure ties are at their worst
05:35 state in nearly 20 years and will languish until federal elections are held in Canada
05:40 in September 2025.