Delhi replays stinker to Canada on so-called referendum by anti-India elements
India on Friday reiterated its concerns about a banned Sikh extremist group’s plan to hold a so-called referendum in Canada on the creation on Khalistan and said New Delhi will continue to press Ottawa to block such moves.
The Indian high commission in Ottawa recently issued a demarche or a formal diplomatic protest to Canada’s foreign ministry regarding the referendum to be held by Sikhs For Justice (SFJ) at Mississauga, a large city close to Toronto, on November 6. This will be the second such exercise after a referendum at Brampton on September 18, also organised by SJF, which was banned by India under the country’s anti-terror law in 2019.
“This is part II of that referendum. I think our position on this so-called referendum by anti-India elements is well known,” external affairs ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi told a weekly news briefing in response to a question.
India’s concerns have been conveyed to the Canadian government, Bagchi said. “We have publicly shared this information earlier. We have taken up with the Canadian high commission here in Delhi our concerns about the next phase of this so-called referendum in Canada and also in Canada with the Canadian authorities,” he said.
“We will continue to take up these issues both in New Delhi and in Ottawa and elsewhere,” he added.
The so-called referendums and other activities by SFJ have emerged as a major irritant in India-Canada ties, which have been hit by differences on various issues in recent years. The Indian side recently referred to the past activities of pro-Khalistan activities in Canada, including the 1985 bombing of an Air India flight that killed 329 people, including 268 Canadian citizens, to highlight its concerns.
Following the SFJ referendum on September 19, India had resorted to the rare step of issuing a travel advisory for Canada over what it said were an increase in anti-India incidents and hate crimes.
In its recent demarche, India asked Canada to denounce the so-called referendums by SFJ and to act against those promoting terror and violence against the world’s largest democracy. India also asked the Justin Trudeau government to stop the referendums and to ensure that Canadian soil is not used to spew hatred or call for violence against the Indian people.
The Indian side further informed Canada that such anti-India activities are being promoted by violent terrorist organisations that advocate the killing of innocent civilians. It also reminded the Canadian government that both countries had agreed at the highest levels not to allow the use of their territories for activities detrimental to each other’s security and national interests.
The Canadian side has reportedly informed the Indian side that it does not recognise the so-called referendums but it cannot act against the organisers of such exercises unless they break the law.