The Indian government is demanding the withdrawal of 41 Canadian diplomats as part of the ongoing fallout between the two countries after Prime Minister Trudeau accused the Indian government of having a hand in the assassination of Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in June.
Currently, Canada has 62 diplomats in India – after repatriation only 21 diplomats would remain.
On Tuesday, Trudeau declined to comment in Ottawa as to what his plans would be regarding India’s demand to have the bulk of Canada’s diplomats repatriated by Oct. 10.
One source said that India may revoke diplomatic immunity from any Canadian diplomats who remain in their country after their proposed deadline, according to the Financial Times.
When Trudeau was asked if his government would retaliate by removing Indian diplomats, he responded, “We’re not looking to escalate, as I’ve said, we’re going to be doing the work that matters in continuing to have constructive relations with India through this extremely difficult time.”
The fallout between the two countries has escalated over the past month, following Trudeau’s announcement in parliament that he had “credible allegations” regarding India’s alleged involvement Nijjar’s killing.
Nijjar had been wanted by the Indian government for many years and labeled as an extremist prior to being gunned down outside a Sikh temple in Surrey, B.C., on June 18.
The Indian government has denied any involvement in the murder.
Trudeau acknowledged that Canada’s relationship with India is “going through an extremely challenging time” and said it’s “important for us to have diplomats on the ground working with the Indian government there to support Canadians and Canadian families.”
Since the fallout began, both countries expelled senior diplomats and updated their government travel advisories to warn their citizens about potential danger while traveling.
India also stopped issuing visas to Canadians.
Last week, the Canadian Armed Forces website was hacked and shut down for several hours and shortly thereafter, a group of pro-India hackers took responsibility for the cyber attack.
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre said India’s request for the removal of Canadian diplomats is very disconcerting and that his party intends to “monitor the situation” to ensure Canadians are protected both at home and abroad.
