Â鶹´«Ã½

Politics

    • U.S. officials opt against condemning India for response to allegations of violent crimes in Canada

    Share
    OTTAWA -

    American officials did not condemn India's response to explosive accusations that its government has been involved in an escalating number of violent crimes in Canada.

    On Monday, Ottawa expelled six Indian diplomats after the RCMP said it had credible evidence that Indian agents played a role in extortion, coercion and murder of Canadian citizens on Canadian soil.

    U.S. State Department spokesman Matthew Miller would not comment on the substance of these new claims at a news conference on Tuesday, and he did not criticize India's decision to also expel six Canadian diplomats.

    "As we've said before, they are serious allegations and we have wanted to see India take them seriously and co-operate with Canada's investigation. They have chosen an alternate path," he said.

    Miller said the U.S. has long been asking India to co-operate with Canadian authorities. In September 2023, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced that Canadian intelligence services were investigating credible information about a potential link between India's government and the June 2023 killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a Sikh activist, in Surrey, B.C.

    NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh speaks to reporters on Parliament Hill in Ottawa, Tuesday, Oct. 15, 2024 (THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick)

    Miller's comments came as an Indian delegation visited Washington to discuss an alleged murder-for-hire plot that U.S. officials revealed last November.

    An unsealed indictment alleged an Indian government employee had directed an attempted assassination in the United States, and spoke about others, including Nijjar.

    Miller said the visit by what he called the Indian inquiry committee, announced on Monday, was unrelated to the allegations made public by Canadian authorities that same day, calling the timing "completely coincidental."

    White House national security spokesman John Kirby said he would not speak about the Canadian case but said the Indian government's decision to send an inquiry committee to Washington signals that India is taking the situation seriously.

    "I wouldn’t speak for the Canadians one way or another," he said. "But we have expressed our deep concern about this to our Indian counterparts. They have expressed to us that they are taking it seriously," Kirby said.

    India has insisted Canada has provided it no evidence to back up any of the allegations.

    RCMP Commissioner Mike Duheme said the force's deputy commissioner tried to share evidence with Indian police last week but was rebuffed. This past weekend, deputy foreign affairs minister David Morrison, along with the RCMP, presented evidence to India in meetings held in Singapore.

    Canada sought India's agreement to revoke the diplomatic immunity of the six individuals so they could be interviewed, but India refused.

    Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly said Monday that India's refusal to co-operate is why Canada declared the six diplomats persona non grata, which is one of the stiffest penalties Canada can impose under the Vienna Convention.

    She also said Monday that she had reached out to Canada's peers in the Five Eyes intelligence alliance about the situation, which includes the U.S. and New Zealand.

    New Zealand's Foreign Minister Winston Peters suggested he would let the judicial processes unfold in a statement that did not mention India.

    "The alleged criminal conduct outlined publicly by Canadian law enforcement authorities, if proven, would be very concerning," Peters wrote on X, saying Ottawa had flagged "ongoing criminal investigations into violence and threats of violence against members of its South Asian community."

    Vina Nadjibulla, research vice-president for the Asia Pacific Foundation, said before these statements that it's crucial Canada receive support from its allies, possibly through diplomatic moves behind the scenes as well as public statements of support.

    "We are in uncharted territory, with implications for the diplomatic relationship as well as for Canada's public safety and national security," she said.

    Nadjibulla said it was notable that Joly accused active diplomats of involvement in criminality, and that she said violence linked to the Indian government had only increased since Canada made public its concerns about Nijjar's killing last year.

    "Canada did what it thought was necessary," Nadjibulla said.

    "In order for Canada, at this stage, to have any kind of co-operation from India and seek accountability for what has happened, we would need India to feel some pressure; we would need India to feel some reason to co-operate."

    In British Columbia, the Sikh gurdwara where Nijjar was president hosted a news conference at which temple leaders and a Sikh independence group called for India's consulates in Vancouver and Toronto to be shut down.

    Gurkeerat Singh, a spokesman for the Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdwara in Surrey, said that "the safety and the security of Sikhs will still be in question" as long as the missions continued to operate.

    Jatinder Singh Grewal of the pro-independence advocacy group Sikhs for Justice, which Nijjar had been involved with, called the consulates "houses of terror" that needed to be shut down.

    In Ottawa, NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh called Tuesday for "severe sanctions on Indian diplomats" involved in criminal activity. The RCMP said Monday there were six Indian diplomats it sought to question about violent activities in Canada, and those six are the ones Canada expelled.

    Singh said Canada must also ban a Hindu group that has been accused of hate speech by Sikh and Muslim groups.

    The House of Commons is not sitting this week, preventing an immediate debate on the matter, but Singh said his party will be asking the House public safety committee to study "other steps we can take to keep Canadians safe."

    The Bloc Québécois asked Tuesday for the government to "intensify collaboration with Canada's allies in terms of intelligence and solidarity, in the face of such acts." The Conservatives on Monday denounced Canada's "extremely concerning" allegations as proof that the government had not taken foreign interference and national security seriously.

    The Liberal government is also trying to assure Canadian businesses that it wants trade with India to continue even though allegations of illegal activity caused Ottawa to suspend negotiations for a free-trade deal a year ago.

    Trade Minister Mary Ng released a statement acknowledging the uncertainty that businesses and investors may have as a result as the diplomatic expulsions. She said the government will continue to support commercial and economic ties between the countries.

    "However, we must consider our economic interests with the need to protect Canadians and uphold the rule of law," she said. "We will not tolerate any foreign government threatening, extorting or harming Canadian citizens on our soil."

    Ng said the government remains "open to a dialogue" with India and looks forward to continuing a "valued relationship."

    This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 15, 2024.

    — With files from Kelly Geraldine Malone, Laura Osman and Brenna Owen 

    IN DEPTH

    Opinion

    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

    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

    A Metro Vancouver man will spend up to four years in prison before he is deported after pleading guilty to a triple stabbing that left his sister-in-law dead and two others, including a two-year-old girl, seriously injured.

    Canada

    • Toronto city staff opted not to install GPS devices on untracked parks maintenance vehicles even though they only cost $200 apiece, the audit committee heard Tuesday, in the fallout of a damning investigation that revealed field crews systemically parked at plazas and restaurants while logging on their timesheets that they were on the job.

    • A La Ronge-area man faces impaired driving charges after a highway rollover that left a teenage boy dead on Saturday.

    • Representatives of a British Columbia Sikh temple whose president was shot dead last year, as well as the Sikh independence group he was involved in, say their communities won't feel safe until India's consulates in Vancouver and Toronto are shut down.

    • A recent wastewater study shows Halifax has the highest THC levels per capita in Canada, with 748 mg per day per 1,000 people.

    • With the cost of inflation and shrinkflation, Maritimers are paying more for Halloween candy this year.

    World

    Politics

    Health

    Sci-Tech

    Entertainment

    Business

    Lifestyle

    Sports

    Autos

    • Elon Musk unveils his 'Cybercab' robotaxi

      Tesla CEO Elon Musk unveiled on Thursday his vision of a 'a fun, exciting future,' an 'age of abundance' full of his company’s self-driving cars without steering wheels, parking lots turned into parks and robots that will walk among the population – that he once again promised would be available within a few years.

    • video

      video

      Dozens of cars were pulled out of the Detroit River in west Windsor on Tuesday, causing many questions for Windsorites.

    Local Spotlight

    With the cost of inflation and shrinkflation, Maritimers are paying more for Halloween candy this year.

    Sḵwx̱wú7mesh Úxwumixw (Squamish Nation) Chef Paul Natrall, the man behind Indigenous food truck Mr. Bannock, is bringing cooking classes on First Nations fare to schools and offices throughout Metro Vancouver.

    The Celtic Colours Festival is taking place at venues around Cape Breton Island in Nova Scotia from Oct. 11 to 19.

    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.

    • Featuring multiple subway lines and rapid bus routes, Vancouver-Little Mountain, a new riding for B.C.'s 2024 provincial election, is rapidly densifying.

    • Representatives of a British Columbia Sikh temple whose president was shot dead last year, as well as the Sikh independence group he was involved in, say their communities won't feel safe until India's consulates in Vancouver and Toronto are shut down.

    • A suspect has been arrested and charged after an allegedly unprovoked attack on a woman visiting Vancouver.

    • Toronto city staff opted not to install GPS devices on untracked parks maintenance vehicles even though they only cost $200 apiece, the audit committee heard Tuesday, in the fallout of a damning investigation that revealed field crews systemically parked at plazas and restaurants while logging on their timesheets that they were on the job.

    • Ontario Transportation Minister Prabmeet Sarkaria says the provincial government is introducing legislation that would require municipalities to receive provincial approval before removing traffic lanes to install new bike paths.

    • Representatives of a British Columbia Sikh temple whose president was shot dead last year, as well as the Sikh independence group he was involved in, say their communities won't feel safe until India's consulates in Vancouver and Toronto are shut down.

    • As officials with the Calgary Public Library prepare to reopen locations on Wednesday, many questions about the cybersecurity breach that closed them remain unanswered.

    • Alberta Premier Danielle Smith says her government is launching a $7-million series of ads against the federal government's proposed cap on oil and gas emissions, a move she believes will hurt production and "kill jobs."

    • Alberta rolled out its fall immunization campaign on Tuesday, but people hoping to get both a flu and COVID-19 vaccine at the same time might have to wait, with many pharmacies yet to receive a shipment of the new COVID shots.

    • More than 40 employees at Best Theratronics Ltd. in Kanata went on strike five and a half months ago - a situation that Canada's largest private sector union says is highly unusual.

    • For the first time, protective measures are being expanded to infants to ward off RSV this fall and winter.

    • Hundreds of would-be voters waited outside the English Montreal School Board (EMSB) offices on Tuesday, the last night to register for the upcoming school board election on Nov. 3.

    • Montreal police (SPVM) said a suspect was “caught red-handed†spray painting graffiti on the SPVM’s North Operations Centre building in the Ahuntsic-Cartierville borough on Tuesday.

    • In an effort to make it safer for pedestrians and cyclists, the City of Montreal is planning to make long-awaited changes to the St-Pierre interchange in LaSalle.

    • The Alberta government continues to divvy up its provincial health authority, with the health minister saying the new agency responsible for primary care is expected to be up and running by November.

    • Construction work has started at several temporary housing sites in Jasper.

    • Alberta Premier Danielle Smith says her government is launching a $7-million series of ads against the federal government's proposed cap on oil and gas emissions, a move she believes will hurt production and "kill jobs."

    • Three people, including a child, were killed in two separate collisions on Highway 101 in Nova Scotia’s Annapolis Valley over the Thanksgiving weekend.

    • A man and woman from Nova Scotia are facing theft charges for allegedly stealing 54 anchors from a Meteghan Centre business last week.

    • A political scientist says some key ridings in the upcoming New Brunswick election could have razor-close finishes.

    • A 28-year-old Winnipegger is facing charges after an altercation unfolded between a store employee and a man who allegedly tried to steal merchandise from a West Alexander area store.

    • Winnipeg's mayor is asking for patience from motorists during anticipated traffic delays at Portage and Main, as work begins to reopen the famed intersection.

    • The Winnipeg Jets have started the 2024-25 season undefeated on the ice and have seen a bump in season ticket buyers off of it.

    • The stage is set at Saskatchewan's Legislative Building for the 2024 Leaders Debate. The event follows a tradition of broadcast events that began all the way back in 1957.

    • The early fall season has been an entertaining time for northern lights viewing. Aurora Borealis, as it is also known, is a night sky phenomenon which can happen throughout the year.

    • The Regina Humane Society (RHS) is the temporary home to many cats and kittens, who now get to enjoy some storytelling thanks to the RHS's Kitty Readers program.

    • Erick Buhr, the man accused of killing his grandmother in 2022, has pled not guilty to second-degree murder.

    • People living in the Ontario and King Street area of Stratford may notice a heavy police presence.

    • Bird feces has now been identified as the “mysterious†substance dropped onto Ayr, Ont. home in August.

    • A La Ronge-area man faces impaired driving charges after a highway rollover that left a teenage boy dead on Saturday.

    • Saskatoon police arrested five people and seized kilos of cocaine and methamphetamine in a targeted bust this month.

    • A motel in North Battleford went up in flames on Monday night.

    • Impaired driving charges against a Brampton, Ont., man have been dismissed after his lawyer successfully argued that his Charter rights were breached during his Sudbury-area arrest.

    • A Greater Sudbury woman is upset about the charges laid against the man accused of attacking her son and a group of his colleagues downtown on Saturday.

    • A 33-year-old suspect in the Sault is facing several charges after reacting angrily when a youth knocked over their basketball net Oct. 5.

    • London City Council has approved what is believed to be one of the largest residential development project proposals in the province.

    • Residents are rallying for change in Lambton County following a fatal crash.

    • It took the full day for a jury to be selected in the trial of two people charged in connection with the shooting death of an 18-year-old Western University student more than three years ago.

    • Police are investigating a drive-by shooting in Springwater Township that they say happened over the Thanksgiving Day long weekend.

    • Â鶹´«Ã½ has confirmed a Beeton, Ont., man accused in a historical sex crimes case involving a five-year-old girl is facing additional charges.

    • A couple from Owen Sound, Ont. is celebrating their good fortune after becoming instant multi-millionaires with Lotto Max.

    • Family and friends of Soham Lane of Harrow, Ont. are gathering this week to remember the late 16 year old who died suddenly earlier this month following a collision on Oct. 6.

    • Essex County OPP are crediting police canine Philie for helping out in the seizure of illegal drugs, cash, and stolen property worth $110,000.

    • Despite a high rate of mortgage-free homeowners in the Windsor-Essex region, experts believe higher costs and interest rates will make paid-off homes less of a reality in the coming years.

    • New Democrat Leader David Eby is making a late appeal to voters to support his party even if they never have before, as the British Columbia election campaign enters the home stretch.

    • A Metro Vancouver man will spend up to four years in prison before he is deported after pleading guilty to a triple stabbing that left his sister-in-law dead and two others, including a two-year-old girl, seriously injured.

    • Lawyers for the founders of Vancouver's Drug User Liberation Front say their clients are being wrongfully criminalized for operating a club that provided untainted drugs to people who would otherwise be at the mercy of a toxic and deadly illicit drug supply.

    • Dave Lindsey began growing giant pumpkins to bring a bit of magic to his grandkids' Halloween.

    • A U.S. District Court judge in Montana has sentenced a 27-year-old man from Kelowna, B.C., to 18 months in prison for using fake names to buy guns with the aim of selling them in Canada.

    • Nearly two years after a man was stabbed to death in downtown Kelowna, RCMP have made an arrest in the case.

    • Health-care advocates say the province's plan for a new primary care agency, operating separately from Alberta Health Services, won't help with doctor shortages in Lethbridge.

    • The Vancouver Giants scored late to force overtime before winning 4-3 over the Lethbridge Hurricanes Friday night.

    • If you’re looking for something to do this long weekend, the Lethbridge Corn Maze is open and hosting its annual fundraiser on Monday.

    • A 33-year-old suspect in the Sault is facing several charges after reacting angrily when a youth knocked over their basketball net Oct. 5.

    • A suspected impaired driver who tried to walk away after running a red light and crashing into a ditch is facing several charges, Sault police said Tuesday.

    • Home sales declined in North Bay in September compared to a year earlier, but sale prices held firm, according to data from the Canadian Real Estate Association.

    N.L.

    Stay Connected
    Follow Â鶹´«Ã½