Ottawa: Canada's outgoing National Security Advisor Jody Thomas on Saturday emphasised that India is cooperating in the investigation of the killing of India-designated terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar, and called the changing relationship an "evolution", as reported by Canada-based CTV News.
Thomas said that Canada has "made advancements in that relationship." In an interview with CTV's Question Period host Vassy Kapelos which airs this Sunday, Thomas said that her discussions with her Indian counterpart have been fruitful. "My discussions with my counterpart in India have been fruitful, and I think they've moved things forward," she said.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's earlier claims
In September last year, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau had claimed that there were "credible allegations" that the Indian government may have been involved in the killing of Sikh separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar, in Surrey in June 2023.
However, India denied the allegations as absurd and motivated. Following that relations between India and Canada have been strained In December last year Justin Trudeau said that he had made the allegations public as he expected the information to be leaked.
The Nikhil Gupta story
Later in December, in a parallel development, the US Justice Department unsealed an indictment against an Indian national for his alleged involvement in a foiled plot to assassinate Pannun. The Justice Department claimed that an Indian government employee (named CC-1), who was not identified in the indictment filed in a federal court in Manhattan, recruited an Indian national named Nikhil Gupta to hire a hitman to carry out the assassination, which was foiled by US authorities, according to prosecutors. Gupta is currently in custody and has been charged with murder-for-hire, which carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison.
India's response
In its response India said it would cooperate with the United States in this probe. When asked by CTV news whether Canada's improved relationship with India was a result of the US indictment, outgoing NSA Jody Thomas said "The two are connected for sure." "The information that they revealed supported our position and our assertions with India. India is working with us, and my counterpart, in particular, far more closely to resolve this," said Thomas.
In December, the Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau had also said that he believes India's relations with Canada may have undergone "a tonal shift" in the days since the unsealing of the US indictment.
