Roundup: Reaction to Monday’s assassination revelations

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In response to Monday’s explosive allegations that agents of the Indian government may have had assassinated a Sikh separatist leader in Canada, the Indian government calls the allegations “absurd” and has expelled a Canadian diplomat in retaliation for the expulsion of one of their diplomats. On his way into Cabinet, Justin Trudeau said that he wasn’t trying to escalate with India but wanted cooperation on the investigation, and said that he did consult with allies before making his speech on Monday.

In terms of international support, the UK offered a fairly tepid statement of support, while the US’ initial lukewarm statement was upgraded to a much more supportive statement later in the day. This is, of course, going to put strain on trade talks, at least in the near term.

https://twitter.com/StephanieCarvin/status/1704216214283624787

There was reaction on the Hill from the World Sikh Organization and the National Council of Canadian Muslims, who said the allegations are not surprising, particularly given the actions of the Modi government to minorities in India. It also sounds like Hardeep Nijjar had been meeting with CSIS on a weekly basis up until his assassination, because of the threats against him, leading to questions about whether our security agencies did enough to protect him (but should probably be asking if they have the capacity to protect threatened community members more). Here is some reaction from Sikh and south Asian MPs and ministers.

Very curiously, Pierre Poilievre came out in the morning to change his tone from his speech on Monday, and is now demanding evidence from the prime minister about the allegations. Even more curious is the fact that there was a take-note debate on the subject in the House of Commons last night, and no Conservative participated, which is very, very unusual. I do have to wonder if this is the influence of new MP Shuvaloy Majumdar, who has been accused of having an anti-Sikh bias in his Indian foreign policy commentary in the past, and whom Conservatives lean heavily on for their foreign policy advice. (Then again, it might just be Poilievre fully engaging in dickish tendencies and not wanting to look like he’s letting Trudeau get any points for this, which is equally a possibility).

For some additional perspective, former CSIS director Richard Fadden and former national security advisor Vincent Rigby talk about what we know, why it’s not a surprise that India has been interfering in Canada, and the reason why it’s difficult to provide necessary protection to some of the people under threat.

Ukraine Dispatch:

Russia’s drone attack on Lviv early Tuesday morning hit a warehouse containing humanitarian supplies, and killed one person. There were more deaths in Kherson due to Russian shelling. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was at the UN General Assembly to call on Russia to end the war so that the world can address more urgent issues like the climate crisis. Back home, there are more corruption allegations surrounding people close to Zelenskyy.

Good reads:

  • Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy is expected to address Parliament in person on Friday, before heading to Toronto.
  • In an interview, Justin Trudeau says he is getting quiet support from other countries in staying strong against web giant bullying around the Online News Act.
  • Ahmed Hussen says he’s looking into speeding up foreign aid funding while cementing the government’s feminist focus on it.
  • Canada signed a $3-billion deal to export two Canadian-made CANDU nuclear reactors to Romania.
  • The Public Sector Integrity Commissioner says that DND is guilty of “gross mismanagement” and breaking ethics laws, and that nobody gets punished for it.
  • Civil liberties and justice groups are (rightfully) concerned that the bail reform bill got passed in the Commons with no committee study—just a few hours of speeches.
  • The “Centre Ice Canadians” are launching a new political party with former New Brunswick Cabinet minister Dominic Cardy as its interim leader. (Good luck).
  • Susan Delacourt sifts through the clues around why the government treated the India allegations very differently than they have with Chinese allegations.
  • My column replies to the Samara Centre op-ed in the Globe and Mail about improving Parliament as a “workplace,” and why that conception needs challenging.

Odds and ends:

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One thought on “Roundup: Reaction to Monday’s assassination revelations”

  1. “Military source says Ukraine ‘likely’ behind strike on Wagner forces in Sudan.” This would be illogical. Imho

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