Lagatar24 Desk
New Delhi, Sep 24: The US gave Canada information about the killing of Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar on Canadian soil, but Ottawa intercepted communications that were more conclusive and led it to accuse India of its alleged involvement in the murder, according to The New York Times, citing Western allied officials.
A top US diplomat in Canada verified that there was “shared intelligence among Five Eyes partners” at the same time as the NYT piece was published, which led Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to shockingly assert that there was a “potential link” between the Indian government operatives and Nijjar’s murder.
The NYT claimed, citing unnamed allied officials, “In the aftermath of the killing, US intelligence agencies offered their Canadian counterparts context that helped Canada conclude that India had been involved.”
The allied authorities, however, claimed that they were unaware of the conspiracy or any evidence implicating India in the case until Nijjar was assassinated.
The US has requested India’s assistance in helping the Canadian government with its inquiries into the killing of Nijjar, the leader of the Khalistan Tiger Force (KTF).
Nijjar was fatally murdered by two unidentified males in Surrey, British Columbia, Canada on June 18. India deemed Nijjar to be a terrorist on June 18.
However, what appears to be the “smoking gun,” intercepted communications of Indian diplomats in Canada showing participation in the conspiracy, was acquired by Canadian officials, according to allied officials, who were quoted by the NYT.
After Nijjar was killed, American officials informed their Canadian counterparts that Washington had not been made aware of the plot in advance and that had it been, Washington would have immediately notified Ottawa in accordance with the “duty to warn” doctrine of the intelligence agencies, according to two allied officials, the newspaper stated.
According to the authorities, who requested anonymity, Nijjar had received a broad warning from Canadian officials but had not been informed that he was the focus of an Indian government plot.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken stated on Saturday that India should cooperate with Canada in its investigation into the killing of the Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar and that “We want to see accountability.”
Trudeau said on Friday that Canada had “many weeks ago” provided evidence on the murder of Nijjar to India. He also asked New Delhi to cooperate with Ottawa in order to ascertain the truth regarding the “very serious matter”.
The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) stated India had not received any specific information from Canada on the matter during its weekly briefing on Thursday.
“No specific information has been shared by Canada on this case, either then or before or after. We have, you know, as we have said, or I think we have made very clear, we are willing to look at any specific information,” MEA spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said.
