Canada report accuses India of election meddling: India rejects 'insinuations'
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New Delhi: The Ministry of External Affairs rejected a report by the Canadian Commission that accused India of interfering in Canada's elections.
Also, India blamed Ottawa for meddling in the country’s internal affairs alongside accusing Canada of creating an environment for ‘illegal migration’ and ‘organised criminal activities’.
The MEA statement stated: ‘It is in fact Canada which has been consistently interfering in India's internal affairs. This has also created an environment for illegal migration and organised criminal activities. We reject the report's insinuations on India and expect that the support system enabling illegal migration will not be further countenanced.’
The inquiry, led by Commissioner Marie-Josée Hogue, termed India the second most active country to involve in electoral interference in Canada, adding that India might have attempted to use ‘proxy agents to clandestinely provide financial support to preferred candidates during the 2021 election’.
The report accused India of using disinformation to interfere in Canada alongside it pointed to ‘challenges’ in relations between both countries in the context of India’s ‘perceived national security concerns about Khalistani separatism’.
The report found no evidence of Canadian parliamentarians plotting with foreign governments to interfere with its elections.
The report gains importance in the backdrop of diplomatic standoff between both countries since Prime Minister Justin Trudeau alleged in 2023 that Indian agents involved in the killing of Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar.
Last year India expelled six Canadian diplomats responding to the Canadian government’s claim that Indian diplomats were ‘persons of interest’ in the Nijjar murder investigation, according to India Today.