India expels senior Canadian diplomat in response to Canada's similar move

NEW DELH - India has decided to expel a senior Canadian diplomat, asking to leave the country within five days, in response to a similar move by Ottawa, reported Sputnik, quoting the Indian Foreign Ministry on Tuesday.

On Monday, Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly said that Ottawa expelled an Indian diplomat after a link was discovered between the Indian government and the murder of Canadian citizen Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a prominent Sikh nationalist leader living in the province of British Columbia and a vocal backer of an independent Khalistan state, earlier this year. The expelled diplomat was heading the Indian intelligence agency's operations in Canada.

"The High Commissioner of Canada to India was summoned today and informed about the decision of the Government of India to expel a senior Canadian diplomat based in India. The concerned diplomat has been asked to leave India within the next five days," the ministry said in a statement posted on X, formerly known as Twitter.

The move reflects the Indian government's "growing concern at the interference of Canadian diplomats in our (Indian) internal matters and their involvement in anti-India activities," the statement added. - BERNAMA