India on Monday expelled six Canadian diplomats and asked them to leave the country by Saturday after Ottawa said it was investigating its Indian ambassador and other diplomats as "persons of interest" in connection with the killing of a Sikh separatist leader last year, official sources said.

In a tit-for-tat move, Canada too asked six Indian diplomats to leave the country alleging that its police reportedly got hold of evidence that they claimed to be a part of an Indian government "campaign of violence".

The Ministry of External Affairs  in a press statement said: "The Government of India has decided to expel the following 6 Canadian Diplomats: Mr. Stewart Ross Wheeler, Acting High Commissioner; Mr. Patrick Hebert, Deputy High Commissioner; Ms. Marie Catherine Joly, First Secretary; Mr. lan Ross David Trites, First Secretary; Mr. Adam James Chuipka, First Secretary; Ms. Paula Orjuela, First Secretary. They have been asked to leave India by or before 11:59 PM on Saturday, October 19, 2024."

Earlier in the evening, the Indian government decided to withdraw its High Commissioner in Canada after Ottawa's fresh accusations against the Indian envoy and other diplomats in connection with a murder investigation which the Modi government called an act of "vote bank politics".

"We have no faith in the current Canadian Government's commitment to ensure their security," the government conveyed to the Canadian Charge d'Affaires, who it summoned this evening.

"It was underlined that in an atmosphere of extremism and violence, the Trudeau Government's actions endangered their safety. We have no faith in the current Canadian Government's commitment to ensure their security. Therefore, the Government of India has decided to withdraw the High Commissioner and other targeted diplomats and officials," the foreign ministry said.

India responded sharply after Canada called the Indian High Commissioner and other diplomats "persons of interest" in the killing of Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar.

Photo Courtesy: PIB

In a long statement, India's Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said, "We have received a diplomatic communication from Canada yesterday suggesting that the Indian High Commissioner and other diplomats are ‘persons of interest’ in a matter related to an investigation in that country. The Government of India strongly rejects these preposterous imputations and ascribes them to the political agenda of the Trudeau Government that is centered around vote bank politics.

"Since Prime Minister Trudeau made certain allegations in September 2023, the Canadian Government has not shared a shred of evidence with the Government of India, despite many requests from our side. This latest step follows interactions that have again witnessed assertions without any facts. This leaves little doubt that on the pretext of an investigation, there is a deliberate strategy of smearing India for political gains."

Canada targets India

In a long statement, Royal Canadian Mounted Police said: "An extraordinary situation is compelling us to speak about what we have discovered in our multiple ongoing investigations into the involvement of agents of the Government of India in serious criminal activity in Canada. It is not our normal process to publicly disclose information about ongoing investigations, in an effort to preserve their integrity."

Accusing India directly, Canada noted: "Investigations have revealed that Indian diplomats and consular officials based in Canada leveraged their official positions to engage in clandestine activities, such as collecting information for the Government of India, either directly or through their proxies; and other individuals who acted voluntarily or through coercion."

"Evidence also shows that a wide variety of entities in Canada and abroad have been used by agents of the Government of India to collect information. Some of these individuals and businesses were coerced and threatened into working for the Government of India. The information collected for the Government of India is then used to target members of the South Asian community," it said.

Worsening relations

India and Canada have been on the loggerheads for quite some time now on the issue of Khalistan and the separatist movement in India bankrolled from abroad.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau last year claimed in the country's Parliament that his government had "credible allegations" linking the killing of Nijjar in June 2023 with the "agents of the Government of India".

Asked whether India had been given any evidence of involvement in the killing, New Delhi reiterated the country's consistent stand.

"Let me first make it clear that no specific or relevant evidence or information has been shared by the Canadian authorities in regard to this matter till date. You will therefore understand our view that the matter is being pre-judged. Obviously, there are political interests at work. We have long maintained that separatists, extremists and those advocating violence have been given political space in Canada," the Indian government spokesperson said.

"Our diplomats have been threatened with impunity and obstructed in their performance of duties. We have also pointed to the Canadian authorities that figures associated with organised crime with links with India have been allowed entry and residency in Canada. Many of our extradition requests are pending. We are having discussions at the diplomatic level on all these matters."

Four Indian nationals have been arrested in Canada in connection with the killing of Nijjar.

In June 2023, the Parliament of Canada had observed a moment of silence in Nijjar's memory prompting India to hold a memorial service in Vancouver paying tributes to 329 people who died in a flight bombing by Khalistani terrorists in 1985.

Nijjar, 45, was shot dead in June last year outside a gurdwara in Surrey, a Vancouver suburb with a large Sikh population.