Khalistan casts shadow over Trudeau visit

Khalistan casts shadow over Trudeau visit

Context:

• The Khalistan issue, which kept India-Canada ties on ice through three decades from 1980, has re-emerged.

“Khalsa day” parade:

• The seeds for the current tensions have been sown since Prime Minister Justin Trudeau came to power in 2015.
• A major breaking point came when Mr. Trudeau attended a “Khalsa day” parade organised by one of the more radical gurudwaras in Toronto.
• At the time, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) made it clear that India’s protest had been taken up with the Canadian government.
• Among other disturbing issues was the felicitation at the parade of a politician responsible for a resolution in the Ontario assembly that accused India of “genocide” during the 1984 anti-Sikh riots, a vote that India had also protested strongly.
• Issues over the growth of Sikh extremist groups, especially those seeking a “referendum 2020” for the worldwide Sikh diaspora to vote on an “Independent Khalistan”, have been raised several times in the past few years.
• Another sore point on the current visit has been Mr. Trudeau’s insistence on including Ministers in his cabinet accused of sympathising with the Khalistan movement.