Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau mentioned “One India” has at all times been his authorities’s official coverage to defend India’s “territorial integrity,” however Delhi responded by attacking Ottawa and “undermining the integrity of our democracy.”
The Prime Minister’s feedback on Wednesday whereas testifying earlier than the nation’s overseas interference inquiry got here amid the continuing dispute between India and Canada, which escalated earlier this week when New Delhi recalled its high envoy to Ottawa and expelled to 6 Canadian diplomats.
Within the assertion, he additionally admitted that his authorities had solely “intelligence and no proof” in opposition to India within the homicide of Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar, who was shot useless in British Columbia final yr, additional prompting condemnation of India.
“‘One India’ is official Canadian coverage, and the truth that there are a variety of individuals in Canada who argue in any other case would not make it Canadian coverage, nevertheless it would not make it unlawful in Canada both,” he mentioned.
Nevertheless, he said that the Indian authorities’s response to Ottawa, particularly by way of the media, was to “assault Canada and Canadians.”
Trudeau additional alleged that India was additionally undermining the Canadian authorities “and, frankly, the integrity of our democracy.”
The Prime Minister mentioned it was solely within the curiosity of public security to let the Canadian individuals know that authorities had details about allegations associated to Nijjar’s homicide, in addition to the truth that police had launched investigations.
“However India’s response to those allegations and our investigations was to redouble the assaults on Canada, the integrity of this authorities and likewise to arbitrarily expel dozens of Canadian diplomats with none trigger besides to say, ‘we do not like what you mentioned.’ “.
Trudeau emphasised that he didn’t wish to be in a scenario of “choosing a struggle with an necessary buying and selling associate with whom we’ve deep people-to-people ties and an extended historical past and our sister democracies.”