Canada continues to face pressure to reveal evidence of link between India and death of Sikh activist

After alleging that India was involved in the death of a Sikh activist in B.C., Canada is facing mounting pressure to prove it.

“I think it’s time Canada showed some evidence to the world, to India, that they were involved in Nijjar’s murder,” said former B.C. Premier Ujjal Dosanjh.

It comes a month after U.S. prosecutors provided proof, when they alleged an Indian government official directed a plot to assassinate a prominent Sikh separatist leader living in New York City. The U.S. indictment pointed to a connection with the case of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, shot dead outside his Surrey gurdwara in June.

“We have to account for the differences in the justice system. American justice system is different. They work differently, they were able to produce the evidence after they laid the charges,” Dosanjh said. “We don’t have the evidence in the public domain as of yet and police may still be gathering the evidence.”

In September, the Prime Minister revealed there was credible intelligence linking India’s government to the killing of Nijjar but didn’t say what that intelligence was.

The Indian government denied the allegation and responded by temporarily suspending its visa services in Canada and for Canadian citizens worldwide. When it came to the allegation from the U.S., rather than an outright denial, India agreed to strike a “high-level” committee to look into the matter.

“There’s no doubt that India has a different tone with the U.S. but that’s always been the case. The U.S. is a world super power and Canada is a minor power,” said Balpreet Singh with the World Sikh Organization.

During a recent year end interview with the Canadian Press, Justin Trudeau said Canada intends to reveal evidence like the U.S. did when “We reach those points in the investigation.” But he added that U.S. authorities started their investigation earlier.

“Whenever any agency is going to make some charges, and in Canada it’s the RCMP working with the crown, they want to get sufficient evidence, they want to make sure it’s tight, this is a very big case, a very high-profile case,” said Randeep Sarai, Surrey Centre Liberal MP.

“I think Prime Minister Trudeau, having publicly, in parliament, made the statement that India appears to have been involved, likely saved some lives,” Singh said.

In his interview with the Canadian Press, Trudeau said he made his allegation public because of safety concerns in the Sikh community and the need to “put a chill on India.”