Sanjay Verma, the Indian high commissioner in Ottawa, reiterated that Canada hasn't disclosed anything in the Khalistan separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar murder case that India may help it with. He also accused Canada of conducting a "tainted" investigation into the crime.
Verma hinted in an interview that the investigations had been tainted by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's public accusations regarding Indian involvement. India expelled 41 Canadian diplomats in response to Trudeau's allegations, sparking a diplomatic spat. However, the US and other Canadian allies in the Five Eyes alliance pushed India to rethink its position and assist the Canadian investigation.
Foreign minister S Jaishankar and his counterpart Melanie Joly are said to be in touch over the issue but India has officially continued to maintain that the allegations made at the highest level by Canada are unsubstantiated and absurd.
“There is no specific or relevant information provided in this case for us to assist them in the investigation. Where is the evidence? Where is the conclusion of the investigation? I would go a step further and say now the investigation has already been tainted. A direction has come from someone at a high level to say India or Indian agents are behind it,” said Verma.
According to Canadian government sources cited in the report, the intelligence linking Indian operatives to the agents includes information from an unidentified Five Eyes ally and Indian "diplomatic communications" intercepted by the Canadian Security Intelligence Service.
The US has also said that joint Five Eyes intelligence informs Canada's accusations. However, Verma stated that any conversation between diplomats is confidential and cannot be made public or used as evidence in court.