Tuesday, October 15

Relations between Canada and India have collapsed in just a matter of days after Canada accused India of murdering and torturing Sikh separatists from India.

Canada has ejected six of India's primary diplomats over accusations that India carried out murders of Sikh activists in their country, but India claims that they voluntarily chose to bring their diplomats back due to unsafe conditions in Canada. On the other hand, India has also kicked out six Canadian diplomats, and intense negotiations are underway between the two countries to come to an agreement over the issue.

To understand the issue, the full story needs to be pictured. It all started in 1948, one year after the independence of India was achieved from the British, when Sikh rebels fought the Indian government for the creation of a Sikh state called Khalistan. The government quickly halted the rebellion, leaving a large number of the world's Sikh population in the Indian state of Punjab, located in the northwestern region of the country. However, many of the Sikhs later moved to Canada-- the world's largest population of Sikhs outside India is in Canada, with 800,000 people (2.1% of Canada's population). In Canada, the movement kept going, and it continues until today.

One of the leaders of these present-day Sikh activists was named Hardeep Singh Najjar-- he obtained Canadian citizenship after migrating to Canada in the 1990s. He ran a plumbing business while organizing rallies for the independence of Khalistan, and the Indian government stated that Nijjar was a terrorist for promoting the idea of Khalistan. Then, in a massive turn of events, Nijjar was shot and killed on June 18, 2023 in the parking lot of a Sikh temple in Surrey, British Columbia.

The attack was conducted by three masked individuals, and Canadian police arrested three people of Indian descent after searching the area. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was outraged, and told public media in September 2023 that the Indian government was responsible for the killing.

Indian foreign ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi later called Canada a "safe haven for terrorists," and India responded by stopping the issuing of visas to all Canadian citizens. However, they reopened e-visa services around two months later when the tensions had eased.

Then, at a recent summit, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau staged talks with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, discussing alleged crimes conducted within Canada. Canada claimed that India's government had been organizing the killings of Sikh activists in their country, as well as that the six Indian diplomats later ejected took part in the crimes. India immediately denied these allegations and refused to allow their diplomats to take part in the investigations, leading to their ejection. Canada claims to have found concrete evidence implicating numerous Indian officials in the crimes against Sikhs, but they have not specified any details about the evidence or how they found it.

India has completely dismissed the alleged evidence and denied all of Canada's claims, but relations between the two countries will not improve until either side accepts the other country's argument.

Fact of the Day (Reader's Digest): The only male animals that give birth are seahorses, sea dragons, and pipefish, which all belong to the same family.

Quote of the Day (Gracious Quotes): Weak minds sink under prosperity as well as adversity; but strong and deep ones have two high tides. (David Hare)

Word of the Day (Merriam-Webster): Taciturn (adj)- Taciturn is a formal word that describes someone who tends to be quiet or who tends to speak infrequently.

In a Sentence: One of the twins was taciturn and shy, while the other one was more outgoing.