Liberal MP criticizes official saying India has stopped foreign interference against Canada
A Liberal member of parliament who has been a platform for alleged government cronyism has criticized an official who says New Delhi has abandoned its campaign of foreign interference against Canada.
Sukh Dhaliwal, whose constituency of Surrey-Newton was rocked by the alleged assassination of a temple president in India in 2023, said the official was not compatible with the public and national security agencies.
“I strongly criticize these statements made by this official because they do not connect with the facts,” said a veteran parliamentarian who told Global News in an interview in his office on Thursday.
“I deal with the community and the victims almost constantly. And this is completely negligent,” he said. “People across Canada, they all come to me and tell me the same thing, that this is still going on.”
He said the official’s comments contradicted the National Security Adviser of Canada, the RCMP and the Canadian Security Intelligence Service, who said there were no statements indicating that Indian efforts had stopped.
Recently in the last federal election, Dhaliwal said that he believed that he was also targeted for interference in other Indian countries. But he said the victims do not like to talk, because they are afraid of their families in India.
“It’s very difficult for them to come out and speak publicly. And in fact, they are oppressed, either officially or by force,” said Dhaliwal, who has served in the south Vancouver area since 2015.
In a written statement, he asked for an investigation into “the judgment and responsibilities of the person who uttered these words,” and said “his behavior and the appropriateness of his role must be reviewed.”
The debate over whether India’s efforts to intervene continues as Prime Minister Mark Carney arrives in Mumbai on Friday. After that he will meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi.
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A day before his visit, a government official said at a press conference that India had stopped the violence against its opponents in Canada that prompted Ottawa to cut ties with the Modi government.
This official, who spoke to reporters on the condition that he not be disclosed, said, “We are sure that the project is not ongoing or we would not be having this type of discussion.”
Pressed by reporters to clarify this, the official refused to elaborate, but said, “I don’t think we will take this trip if we think this type of activity will continue.”
The statement marks the first time that Canada has said that the Indian intelligence service, which is suspected of at least one murder, foiled a plot to kill pro-Khalistan activists and loot, has been suspended.
Neither the RCMP, CSIS nor the Prime Minister’s Office responded to requests for comment by deadline.
But with Carney set to arrive in India in hopes of securing a trade deal to end the current US tariff agenda, the official’s claim has been met with skepticism, particularly among Canadian Sikhs.
The World Sikh Organization of Canada called the official’s comments “absolutely false” and said it was “out of step with what Canadians experience in the world and what we see firsthand.”
Last weekend, Vancouver police warned Canadian Sikh activist Moninder Singh of an imminent threat to him, his wife and their children. It is the fourth such warning since 2022.
Writing in X, former CSIS analyst Jessica Davis said it seems unlikely that India’s interference will stop. “It is possible that the government believes in India out of ignorance, or misleads Canadians,” he wrote.
Canada’s national security agencies believe India launched a campaign in 2022 to kill activists in North America who support Khalistan, an independent state in the Sikh-majority Punjab region.
The first victim was Hardeep Singh Nijjar, who was shot dead outside the Surrey, BC temple where he was the president. RCMP believe India arranged for Lawrence Bishnoi to be killed.
The FBI discovered a similar plot to kill a Canadian pro-Khalistan activist in New York. The police officer hired by India’s intelligence chief to handle the case recently pleaded guilty.
Bishnoi and his former Canadian lieutenant Goldy Brar are also believed to be behind another scam that has spread terror in Surrey and other South Asian cities.
RCMP Commissioner Mike Duheme announced in October 2024 that the Indian government was linked to a wider network of violence, particularly against Khalistan activists. Canada then expelled six Indian diplomats.
But since taking office, Carney has restored, and deepened, ties with India, culminating in his first visit to India this week.
Despite his concerns, Dhaliwal said he believes Carney and Foreign Minister Anita Anand will make national security a priority during their meetings with Indian leadership.
“They assured us that, you know, when it comes to law and life in Canada, it takes priority and they’ve raised it before and they’re going to raise it again,” he said.
Stewart.Bell@globalnews.ca
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