A Liberal MP’s claim that pro-Khalistan “extremists” may have infiltrated Canadian politics and law enforcement agencies parrots the lines of an Indian government accused of threatening and killing Canadians, NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh.
But backbencher Chandra Arya fired back, accusing Singh of refusing to acknowledge the presence of “violent Khalistani extremism” in Canada and saying he has “zero credibility” on the issue.
Their comments followed a violent clash between Sikh separatists and Hindu worshippers outside a Hindu temple in Brampton on Sunday, which garnered condemnation from Canadian political leaders and a swift rebuke from the Modi government amid simmering tensions between Canada and India over explosive allegations that linked Indian officials in Canada to homicides and threats against Canadians, which New Delhi has denied.
The pro-Khalistan Sikh groups said they were protesting the presence of Indian consular officials at the temple when the violence erupted, leading to three arrests and the suspension of a police officer who attended the demonstration while off-duty.
Arya said the pro-Khalistan protesters had crossed a “red line,” blaming them for the violence that he said “shows how deep and brazen Khalistani violent extremism has become in Canada.”
“I begin to feel that there is a small grain of truth in the reports that in addition to Canadian political apparatus, Khalistanis have effectively infiltrated into our law enforcement agencies,” Arya wrote Sunday on X. “No wonder that under the ‘freedom of expression’ Khalistani extremists are getting a free pass in Canada.”
As Singh also condemned the weekend violence, he accused Arya of escalating tensions with conspiracy theories. (The Star)
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