David Vigneault, Canada’s senior intelligence official, secretly traveled to India twice this year to discuss the high-profile case of Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar’s murder. Prior to the public revelation of the arrests of four Indian nationals suspected in the murders, the clandestine travels, which occurred in February and March of 2024, were made public. According to PTI, people with knowledge of the situation have corroborated this statement.
Indian authorities met with David Vigneault, the director of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS), to discuss the conclusions of Ottawa’s inquiry into Nijjar’s death. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s audacious claims in September 2023 that suggested possible Indian participation in Nijjar’s death served as the impetus for this study. New Delhi swiftly rejected these charges as “absurd”.
Although he declined to provide details, a senior Canadian government official confirmed Vigneault’s trips to India. “We can confirm that the Director of CSIS, David Vigneault, has travelled to India, but we do not comment on the nature or substance of closed-door meetings,” the official said to PTI.
When it comes to Vigneault’s travels, the Indian government has said nothing and declined to comment on the intelligence talks. Vigneault’s missions, it was pointed out, were a part of larger initiatives to deal with the delicate and growing problem of Nijjar’s death.
India has declared Hardeep Singh Nijjar a terrorist. He was shot and killed on June 18, 2023, outside a gurdwara in Surrey, British Columbia. The investigation into the murder has been overseen by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP). The Canadian authorities declared in May 2024 that four Indian nationals, Karanpreet Singh (28), Kamalpreet Singh (22), Karan Brar (22), and Amandeep Singh, had been taken into custody in relation to the case.
It has been suggested by sources that more Canadian officials traveled to India to deliberate on different aspects of the Nijjar case, emphasizing the intricacy of the case and the global scope of the inquiry.
India and Canada are at odds over the Nijjar issue, especially on how each country responds to parts of the Khalistani community. This conflict was brought to light even further in a special legislative report released by the Canadian government, which ranked India as the country’s second-biggest danger to democracy, after China.
In the midst of these escalating hostilities, Ottawa has been urged by India to protect its diplomats from threats posed by Khalistani organizations. This pressure on relations between the two countries prompted India to demand in October 2023 that Canada reduce its diplomatic staff. As a result, there was a dramatic decline in diplomatic ties when 41 Canadian diplomats and their families were removed from India.
Both countries are prepared to stick to their positions as long as the Nijjar death inquiry is ongoing. The significance of truth and accountability is emphasized by Canada, which highlights its commitment to an impartial inquiry headed by the RCMP. Prime Minister Trudeau’s charges are met by India’s steadfast denial of any role in Nijjar’s murder, as it continues to stand by its previous claims.
