LONDON — The Sikh Federation UK has issued a press release demanding that Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney use his current trip to India to explicitly distance himself from recent “untruths” spread by Canadian officials regarding the threat of transnational repression. A copy of the written release is available with the Sikh Siyasat News (SSN).
The controversy erupted on Wednesday (Feb 25), shortly before Prime Minister Carney embarked on his four-day visit to India, when unnamed Canadian government officials provided a background briefing to reporters. One senior official claimed that Carney would not be traveling to New Delhi if the federal government believed India was actively interfering in Canada’s democratic processes. Another official justified the trip by stating that Canada has the “right mechanisms to detect and disrupt threats,” adding, “I really don’t think we’d be taking this trip if we thought these kind of activities were continuing.”
These remarks have been sharply criticized by Sikh community representatives, who argue the statements were manufactured simply to justify Prime Minister Carney’s visit. The Sikh Federation UK highlighted that for the past two and a half years, Canadian politicians—including former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau—alongside Canadian law enforcement agencies, have consistently called out the Indian government and its agents for transnational repression and political interference targeting Sikh activists and businesses.
The statements made by the unnamed officials have sparked a firestorm, largely because they appear to contradict recent intelligence assessments and cannot be corroborated by official channels. More than 48 hours after the briefing, no Canadian Ministers, the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS), or the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) have stepped forward to defend the officials’ claims.
When questioned on Thursday (Feb 26) about whether India is still engaging in foreign interference, CSIS spokesperson Magali Hébert refrained from specifically addressing the senior officials’ comments. Similarly, the RCMP has refused to comment directly on the matter.
Dabinderjit Singh OBE, the Lead Executive for political engagement at the Sikh Federation UK, issued a strong warning to the Canadian leadership.
“Mark Carney and other Ministers while in India must break their silence, clarify the threat that still exists from the Indian government and distance themselves from the untruths spread by naive Canadian government officials on Wednesday,” Dabinderjit Singh stated.
He further emphasized the need for transparency, adding, “The Canadian public deserve to have total clarity and know the truth on the risk posed by the Indian government to Canadians or the PM and his Ministers will be challenged and forced to face the consequences.”
