India has denied that Inside Minister Amit Shah planned to attack Sikh activists on Canadian soil and criticized Canada for the “absurd and baseless” allegations.
Shah, 60, oversees India's internal security forces as inside minister. He is considered the second most powerful person in the country after Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
On Saturday, Randhir Jaiswal, a spokesperson for India's Ministry of External Affairs, told reporters that New Delhi had summoned the representative of the Canadian High Commission on Friday and lodged a strong protest.
“The government of India protests in the strongest terms the absurd and unfounded references” about Shah, Jaiswal said, by Canadian Deputy Foreign Minister David Morrison.
The Canadian minister told the national security committee that the government considers Shah the architect of the campaign against Sikh separatists in the country, which included the murder of an activist.
The Canadian government has accused India of orchestrating the 2023 murder in Vancouver of naturalized Canadian citizen Hardeep Singh Nijjar, 45, a prominent Khalistani activist.
The Modi government has branded Khalistan activists belonging to the Sikh community as “terrorists” and threats to its security. Activists demand that an independent homeland, known as Khalistan, be created in India.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and the national police have said in the past that there were “clear indications” of Indian involvement in the killing, as well as a widespread campaign of intimidation, violence and other threats against Khalistan activists.
Canada's spy agency also issued a report warning that India was using cyber technology to track Sikh separatists abroad and had also stepped up cyber attacks against Canadian government networks.
“These irresponsible actions will have serious consequences for sinalagmático relations,” Jaiswal said on Saturday, referring to Morrison's allegations.
India has repeatedly rejected Canada's allegations, which have led to a free fall in diplomatic relations between New Delhi and Ottawa.
Canada has already expelled Indian diplomats it linked to the campaign it says targets Sikhs, while India has responded by expelling Canadian officials.
On Wednesday, U.S. State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said Canada's recent allegations about Shah “are concerning.”
The United States also charged a former Indian intelligence officer, Vikash Yadav, with allegedly leading a foiled plot to assassinate Sikh separatist leader Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, a US-Canadian dual citizen and Indian critic in New York City.