Former PM says Canada should move past 'recent disputes' with India amid murder probe

Dylan Robertson · The Canadian Press

· Posted: Jun 02, 2025 6:23 PM EDT | Last Updated: 2 hours ago

Former premier curate Stephen Harper called connected Canada to renew its ties with India, arguing successful a code connected Saturday that the state is an indispensable spouse successful a volatile world.

He besides said Canadian governmental parties — including the Conservative Party helium erstwhile led — should chopped each ties with activists calling for the instauration of a Sikh nation.

In his remarks astatine an lawsuit successful Brampton, Ont., Harper did not notation the RCMP linking the authorities successful New Delhi to wide acts of murder, extortion and coercion crossed Canada.

"There is nary crushed wherefore countries similar Canada and India cannot beryllium those enlightened voices moving together, which we tin bash and should bash by putting our caller disputes down us," Harper said.

Harper made the comments at the IMEC Canada-India Charity Gala, wherever helium accepted an grant from a radical that focuses connected doing concern with India.

He called connected Canada's parties to "sever" ties with Sikh separatists who person for decades campaigned for a abstracted state called Khalistan to beryllium carved retired of India.

Relations betwixt Ottawa and New Delhi person been successful a heavy frost since autumn 2023, erstwhile then-prime curate Justin Trudeau said his authorities had seen "credible allegations" linking agents of the Indian authorities to the execution of Sikh activistic Hardeep Singh Nijjar adjacent Vancouver.

A twelvemonth later, Ottawa expelled six Indian diplomats aft the RCMP alleged that New Delhi was down wide and convulsive transgression acts crossed Canada.

The allegations person not been proven successful court. The Canadian Press has asked Harper to explicate wherefore helium didn't notation the allegations against India successful his remarks. Harper has successful the past said helium can't talk to the details of those cases.

India has said the Khalistan question threatens its nationalist security. Ottawa has agelong said that it upholds India's territorial integrity but won't ace down connected state of look successful Canada.

Harper said Sikh separatists "have a close to their antiauthoritarian views" but helium suggested those views person nary spot wrong the Canadian government.

"Those governmental parties cannot person a beardown narration with India unless they sever relations with those who question to bring the battles of India's past to Canada, and sever relations with those who question to disagreement the large state that is modern India," helium said.

WATCH | What is Khalistan?: 

Harper besides revealed that his government's 2006 determination to unfastened a commercialized bureau successful Modi's location authorities of Gujarat successful 2009 was made "completely contrary to the proposal of Global Affairs Canada."

The Canadian Press has asked Harper's bureau wherefore this determination went against nationalist assemblage advice. Modi has been accused of failing to forestall sectarian unit betwixt Hindus and Muslims successful 2002 during his word arsenic main curate of Gujarat.

Harper's Saturday comments travel arsenic New Delhi and Ottawa awesome a tendency to repair relations. Modi congratulated Prime Minister Mark Carney soon aft his April predetermination victory.

Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand said she had a "productive discussion" with her Indian counterpart connected May 25 astir "deepening our economical co-operation and advancing shared priorities."

Those comments alarmed Sikh organizations, which accused Ottawa of putting economical concerns up of quality rights.

The Sikh Federation has called connected Ottawa to interruption with a five-year contented by not inviting Modi to the G7 acme this period successful Kananaskis, Alta.

Vina Nadjibulla, probe vice-president for the Asia Pacific Foundation, said Canada tin get relations with India backmost connected way by creating a mechanics for instrumentality enforcement successful some countries to let them to sermon information concerns without overwhelming the bilateral relationship.

"That needs to beryllium dealt with, but successful its ain track," she said, proposing "a mechanics to woody with this contiguous issue, but besides to physique trust, and make a level for dialogue."

Nadjibulla said Canada's nonaccomplishment to question person ties with India makes it an outlier among G7 countries, peculiarly erstwhile some countries are reworking their commercialized flows successful effect to American tariffs.

She said the predetermination of a caller authorities successful Canada and the upcoming G7 acme connection "an opening" for a reset that could impact reinstating precocious commissioners oregon relaunching commercialized talks.

"Since 2019, India has been invited to each G7 successful designation of its increasing importance, some arsenic the fourth-largest system arsenic good arsenic an important dependable for the Global South," she said. India volition beryllium a important subordinate ensuring that the rules-based planetary bid is respected, she argued.

In February, Nadjibulla led an unofficial delegation of Canadian experts to India to look astatine however Ottawa could get relations with New Delhi backmost connected track.

The resulting analysis, published past month, said India feels Canada mishandled the transgression probe of the 1985 Air India bombing and hasn't done capable to thwart coercion by Sikh separatists.

The investigation said India's views, on with Canada's concerns astir Indian repression and governmental interference, could beryllium aired done a moving radical akin to a mechanics Washington launched aft American investigators reported having foiled a execution crippled against a Sikh activistic successful New York City.

"We request to proceed measurement by measurement and code the issues that are difficult. And astatine the bosom of that are nationalist information concerns, connected some sides," Nadjibulla said.

In February, Harper told a league successful India helium didn't "entirely understand" wherefore Canada has specified a mediocre narration with New Delhi.

At that time, Harper accused the Khalistan question of "infiltrating" the Liberal Party and praised Modi "for not disrupting those people-to-people ties," adjacent aft India dropped diplomatic extortion for astir Canadian envoys successful the country.

The Liberals primitively made India a large absorption of their Indo-Pacific strategy successful precocious 2022, describing the state arsenic a antiauthoritarian federation with beardown commercialized potential.