RCMP alleges Indian officials in Canada connected to extortion, homicides
The RCMP is alleging Indian diplomats and consular officials based in Canada engaged in clandestine activities linked to serious criminal activity in this country, including homicides and extortions.
The stunning allegations are the latest in an escalating confrontation between India and Canada that kicked off publicly last year when Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Canada was investigating credible allegations that agents of the Indian government were involved in the killing of a prominent Sikh activist.
In an unexpected and unusual press conference Monday, RCMP Commissioner Mike Duheme outlined, in broad strokes, the alleged activity of Indian diplomats in Canada.
"Investigations have revealed that Indian diplomats and consular officials based in Canada leveraged their official positions to engage in clandestine activities, such as collecting information for the government of India, either directly or through their proxies; and other individuals who acted voluntarily or through coercion," Duheme told reporters.
"Evidence also shows that a wide variety of entities in Canada and abroad have been used by agents of the government of India to collect information. Some of these individuals and businesses were coerced and threatened into working for the government of India. The information collected for the government of India is then used to target members of the South Asian community," Duheme said.
The evidence collected by the RCMP was presented directly to officials of the Indian government by Deputy RCMP Commissioner Mark Flynn, Canadian National Security and Intelligence Adviser Nathalie Drouin and Canadian Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs David Morrison over the weekend.
Two Canadian officials familiar with the fast-evolving situation say Canada asked that India remove the diplomatic immunity of the implicated officials in Canada so that charges could be laid.
The officials say India said no. Canada then submitted a diplomatic note saying the Indian officials would be expelled.
In response, India announced it was withdrawing High Commissioner to Canada Sanjay Kumar Verma, and other "targeted diplomats and officials."
One high-level Canadian official tells Â鶹´«Ã½ that the Indian High Commissioner was told he was a person of interest in the June 2023 murder of Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar.
Â鶹´«Ã½ is not naming the Canadian officials as they were not authorized to speak publicly on the case.
"We have received a diplomatic communication from Canada yesterday suggesting that the Indian High Commissioner and other diplomats are 'persons of interest' in a matter related to an investigation in that country," reads a statement released by India's Ministry of External Affairs Monday.
"The Government of India strongly rejects these preposterous imputations and ascribes them to the political agenda of the Trudeau Government that is centered around vote bank politics," the statement reads.
A photograph of late temple president Hardeep Singh Nijjar is seen on a banner outside the Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdwara Sahib, in Surrey, B.C., Sept. 18, 2023. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck
The Indian government is claiming Canada has not shared a "shred of evidence" and accused the Trudeau government of a "deliberate strategy of smearing India for political gains."
India also announced it has summoned Canada's Charge d'Affaires Stewart Wheeler to protest the allegations.
The Indian government, led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has long accused Canada of allowing pro-Khalistan "terrorists" to operate in Canada. The Khalistan movement seeks to create a homeland for Sikhs in the Punjab region.
The high-level Canadian official says in conversations with India over the past weeks, NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh, a prominent Canadian Sikh politician, was brought up multiple times, with India fighting back against the Canadian allegations by claiming the Trudeau government is biased because of its previous governing arrangement with Singh through the supply-and-confidence agreement.
Trudeau is scheduled to hold a press conference with Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly and Public Safety Minister Dominic LeBlanc later this afternoon.
Updates to follow.
With files from Â鶹´«Ã½' Vassy Kapelos and Colton Praill
IN DEPTH
Jagmeet Singh pulls NDP out of deal with Trudeau Liberals, takes aim at Poilievre Conservatives
NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh has pulled his party out of the supply-and-confidence agreement that had been helping keep Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's minority Liberals in power.
'Not the result we wanted': Trudeau responds after surprise Conservative byelection win in Liberal stronghold
Conservative candidate Don Stewart winning the closely-watched Toronto-St. Paul's federal byelection, and delivering a stunning upset to Justin Trudeau's candidate Leslie Church in the long-time Liberal riding, has sent political shockwaves through both parties.
'We will go with the majority': Liberals slammed by opposition over proposal to delay next election
The federal Liberal government learned Friday it might have to retreat on a proposal within its electoral reform legislation to delay the next vote by one week, after all opposition parties came out to say they can't support it.
Budget 2024 prioritizes housing while taxing highest earners, deficit projected at $39.8B
In an effort to level the playing field for young people, in the 2024 federal budget, the government is targeting Canada's highest earners with new taxes in order to help offset billions in new spending to enhance the country's housing supply and social supports.
'One of the greatest': Former prime minister Brian Mulroney commemorated at state funeral
Prominent Canadians, political leaders, and family members remembered former prime minister and Progressive Conservative titan Brian Mulroney as an ambitious and compassionate nation-builder at his state funeral on Saturday.
Opinion
opinion Don Martin: Gusher of Liberal spending won't put out the fire in this dumpster
A Hail Mary rehash of the greatest hits from the Trudeau government’s three-week travelling pony-show, the 2024 federal budget takes aim at reversing the party’s popularity plunge in the under-40 set, writes political columnist Don Martin. But will it work before the next election?
opinion Don Martin: The doctor Trudeau dumped has a prescription for better health care
Political columnist Don Martin sat down with former federal health minister Jane Philpott, who's on a crusade to help fix Canada's broken health care system, and who declined to take any shots at the prime minister who dumped her from caucus.
opinion Don Martin: Trudeau's seeking shelter from the housing storm he helped create
While Justin Trudeau's recent housing announcements are generally drawing praise from experts, political columnist Don Martin argues there shouldn’t be any standing ovations for a prime minister who helped caused the problem in the first place.
opinion Don Martin: Poilievre has the field to himself as he races across the country to big crowds
It came to pass on Thursday evening that the confidentially predictable failure of the Official Opposition non-confidence motion went down with 204 Liberal, BQ and NDP nays to 116 Conservative yeas. But forcing Canada into a federal election campaign was never the point.
opinion Don Martin: How a beer break may have doomed the carbon tax hike
When the Liberal government chopped a planned beer excise tax hike to two per cent from 4.5 per cent and froze future increases until after the next election, says political columnist Don Martin, it almost guaranteed a similar carbon tax move in the offing.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING RCMP alleges Indian officials in Canada connected to extortion, homicides
The RCMP is alleging Indian diplomats and consular officials based in Canada engaged in clandestine activities linked to serious criminal activity in this country, including homicides and extortions.
'Escalating incidents' between two Hamilton high schools are believed to be connected to a car crash last week that left a 15-year-old boy dead, police say.
Father of 10-year-old girl found dead in the U.K. called police from Pakistan to say he killed her
The father of a 10-year-old girl found dead in her home in England fled to Pakistan and called U.K. police from there to say he had killed her, a jury heard Monday.
'We apologize to anyone we've offended': Bath and Body Works pulls candles over backlash
A major American retailer has stopped selling its new winter-themed candle over backlash from shoppers who said its design resembled Ku Klux Klan hoods.
Undercooked bear meat linked to outbreak of rare parasitic disease in U.S.
An outbreak of a rare parasitic disease has been linked to undercooked bear meat eaten by dozens of people at a gathering in North Carolina, a new U.S. CDC report has revealed.
Canadian drink company tastes controversy after Simu Liu raises cultural appropriation questions
Controversy bubbled for a Canadian drink company after its founders drew the ire of a Marvel superhero on an episode of a 'Shark Tank'-style reality series.
Striking images show rare floods in the largest hot desert on Earth
Striking images from the Sahara Desert show large lakes etched into rolling sand dunes after one of the most arid, barren places in the world was hit with its first floods in decades.
British Columbia's New Democratic Party says it is responsible for a parody social media post that has B.C. Conservative Leader John Rustad promising to bring back McDonald's McRib sandwiches.
British content creator dies trying to climb Spain's highest bridge
A 26-year-old British man has died after falling from Spain's tallest bridge during an attempt to climb one of its pylons.
Local Spotlight
Sometimes love is written in the stars, but for one couple, it’s written in the aurora borealis.
Canadian hip hop artist Dillan King says running 100 marathons in 100 days was not only the hardest thing he has ever done, but the 'proudest accomplishment' of his entire life.
James Taylor never expected to be walking home with a bag full of groceries he didn't buy.
This weekend marks the fifth anniversary of a large blizzard that paralyzed Manitoba.
There was an eye-catching mix of rainbows and lightning over Vancouver following a brief downpour this week.
Jeff Warner from Aidie Creek Gardens in the northern Ontario community of Englehart has a passion for growing big pumpkins and his effort is paying off in more ways than one.
Saskatchewan’s Jessica Campbell has made hockey history, becoming the first ever female assistant coach in the National Hockey League (NHL).
Have you ever seen videos of hovercrafts online or on TV and thought, 'Wow, I wish I could ride one of those.' One Alberta man did, and then built his own.
A B.C. couple is getting desperate – and creative – in their search for their missing dog.