Times of India picture.
Ottawa: Canada denied that its government issued statements that linked Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and National Security Advisor Ajit Doval to the killing of the Khalistani separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar. This is after a Canadian media report claimed that the mentioned Indian officials were aware of the alleged plot to kill Nijjar, The Indian Express reported.
The Canadian administration called the media report “speculative and inaccurate” and added that it is also not aware of any evidence that PM Modi was aware of any such criminal activity.
Canada’s Privy Council issued a statement signed by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s National Security and Intelligence Advisor Nathalie G Drouin. It read, “On October 14th, because of a significant and ongoing threat to public safety, the RCMP and officials took the extraordinary step of making public accusations of serious criminal activity in Canada perpetrated by agents of the Government of India. The Government of Canada has not stated, nor is it aware of the evidence, linking Prime Minister Modi, Minister Jaishankar, or NSA Doval to the serious criminal activity within Canada,” quoted The Indian Express.
After the report in Canadian newspaper The Globe and Mail, Indian External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said that such ludicrous statements must be dismissed with the contempt they deserve, The Indian Express reported.