Former Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh on Monday expressed deep concern over the deteriorating relationship between India and Canada and alleged that Canadian government patronises a terrorist or a separatist movement for political gains, which is irresponsible and to a point criminal.
“Some countries that permit a separatist movement to exist in their jurisdiction are keeping such movements in check, but in the case of Canada, a government that patronises a terrorist or a separatist movement for political gain, is irresponsible and to a point criminal,” said Singh in a four-page statement posted on X.
The statement comes amid the current crisis in Indo-Canadian relations, exacerbated by an alleged Khalistani attack on a Hindu temple in Canada’s Brampton.
Expressing strong criticism of Trudeau, Singh asserted that electoral gains appear to outweigh long-standing international relationships.
“It is not often that countries, friends for decades, should end up as have Canada and India today. The assassination of a person of extreme separatist views Hardeep Singh Nijjar, led to the Prime Minister of Canada Justin Trudeau pointing his finger, in a parliamentary statement, towards India as being responsible for this act,” he said.
Singh said Trudeau later stated that he didn’t have concrete evidence, but that fingers pointed in that direction.
“This itself is a violation of the sanctity of Parliament where a prime ministerial statement is taken as the truth and nothing but the truth,” he added.
For Trudeau, he said, electoral compulsions seem to be more important than decades old relationships, national commitments and age old parliamentary traditions.
Recalling his own experiences with Canada’s approach to Sikh extremism during his tenure as Punjab Chief Minister, Singh asserted that Trudeau had previously ignored and even supported separatist elements for political gain.
“Some years ago when I was Chief Minister of Punjab, I was aware of Canada’s approach to Sikh extremism being prevalent in that country, which was fast growing to which Trudeau not only turned a blind eye, but also patronised such people to enhance his political base. He sent his defence minister a Sikh, to Punjab, I refused to meet him, as he himself was an active member of the World Sikh Organization, at that time the parent body of the Khalistani movement, which was then presided over by none other than his father,” said Singh.
Recounting his meeting with Trudeau in Punjab months later, Singh said he presented a list of individuals involved in the Khalistani movement, some of whom were part of Trudeau’s cabinet.
“Some months later Trudeau visited Punjab and refused to meet me till he was told in no uncertain terms by the then External Affairs minister Sushma Swaraj that if he did not meet the Chief Minister, he could not visit the state. We met in Amritsar, he was accompanied by his Defence Minister Sajjan, I presume an attempt to get one up on me! I told him in no uncertain terms of Punjab’s problems with Canada,” Singh said in the statement.
Despite promises to address these concerns, Singh lamented that extremist activities have only intensified since that encounter, adversely affecting Punjab’s stability and economy.
“It had become a haven of the Khalistani separatist movement, which no Punjabi wanted, and also of gun running, drugs and gangsters. I handed him a list of over twenty leading individuals who were actively involved in this movement, some were also members of his cabinet, one of whom was sitting beside him. I was promised that he would look into these grievances.
“On the contrary, since our meeting these nefarious activities have grown. The Kanishka bombing is now out of his mind and so are the other acts that continue to destabilise Punjab. Our economy continues to stagnate as Industry always enters when it visualises peace and stability,” added Singh.
He said now the gangsters are prevalent, weapons are freely used.
“Agriculture is becoming non profitable regardless of the increase in the state’s overall production, as input prices of fertilizers, oil and other essentials are becoming prohibitive, the minimum support price increases marginally on an annual basis.
“The reason is obvious! The purchase by the FCI is meant for food security, and an affordable price that the under-privileged of the country can afford. If the MSP goes up so does the consumer price to the millions of our poor,” he added.
As Trudeau faces upcoming elections, Singh said that the Prime Minister’s recent actions —such as severing diplomatic ties and implicating Indian officials — reflect a desperate attempt to divert attention from his domestic challenges.
He concluded with optimism, saying that a stable and cooperative relationship between India and Canada could lead to a brighter future for Punjab and India as a whole.
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Under Trudeau, Canada ‘patronises a terrorist movement’: Ex-Punjab CM Captain Amarinder Singh
