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India Canada Relations are facing a serious downturn after Canada Prime Minister’s Trudeau accused “agents of the Government of India” of killing of Canadian Khalistani leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar in June 2023. Mr. Trudeau’s accusation has set off a chain of events. After Canada expelled a senior Indian diplomat, India summoned the Canadian High Commissioner and expelled Canada’s Station chief for intelligence on Tuesday.
What is the history of India Canada Relations?
India Canada established diplomatic relations in 1947.This relationship was to be built upon built shared traditions of democracy, pluralism and strong interpersonal connections.
However, India Canada relations witnessed deterioration in the political domain despite economic engagement, regular high-level interactions and long-standing people-to-people ties.
Thaw in India Canada Political RelationsCanada’s support for Plebiscite in Kashmir – Canada supported a plebiscite in the Indian state of Kashmir in 1948. Canada’s opposition to India’s nuclear tests – In the aftermath of the nuclear tests, India’s relations with Canada deteriorated as Canada recalled its high commissioner to India following the nuclear tests. India’s reluctance to accede to the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) further widened the gulf between New Delhi and Ottawa for many years. Khalistan Issue – Relations between India and Canada have remained strained due to Canada’s alleged leniency toward supporters of Khalistan. |
However, during the tenure of Conservative Party’s Stephen Harper as Canadian PM from 2006 to 2015, Canada and India enjoyed strong relations. This period was marked by 19 high-level visits from Canada to India and the joint celebration of 2011 as the Year of India in Canada.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Canada in 2015 was the first bilateral visit by an Indian PM since 1973. India Canada relation was elevated from bilateral relation to a strategic partnership. The government hailed the visit with the assumption that decades of mistrust over the Khalistan issue could be brushed aside.
However, India Canada diplomatic relations have deteriorated further since 2015 due to the Khalistan protests that have increased in the recent times.
The Khalistan Shadow over India Canada Relations over the yearsDuring Militancy In Punjab 1982- Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau (Justin Trudeau’s father) declined to extradite Talwinder Singh Parmar accused of killing two police officers in Punjab. 1984- In the aftermath of Operation Bluestar (launched by the Indian army to root out militants from the Golden Temple in June 1984) bolstered the Khalistan movement among the diaspora. 1985- Babbar Khalsa(Khalistan separatist organisation) orchestrated the bombing of Air India Kanishka in June 1985 which resulted in 331 civilian deaths. Post 2015 Period 2015- Justin Trudeau’s proximity to individuals sympathetic to Khalistan’s cause strained bilateral relations. 2017- The then Punjab Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh refused to meet Canadian Defence Minister Harjit Singh Sajjan, accusing him of associating with separatists. 2018- India got aggravated when Jaspal Atwal convicted of attempting to assassinate an Indian Cabinet minister in 1986 was invited to dine with Trudeau during his Visit to India. Trudeau got a cool reception during his visit to India when he was received at the airport by Minister of State for Agriculture Gajendra Singh Shekhawat instead of PM Modi. 2019- The annual ‘Public Report on the Terrorist Threat to Canada’ released in December 2018, mentioned ‘Sikh extremism’ and Khalistan for the first time. However, in 2019 Canada revised the report just a day before Vaisakhi, removing all mentions of Khalistan and Sikh extremism. 2020- India accused Trudeau of inciting extremists when he expressed concerns about New Delhi’s response to the farmers’ protest and pledging support for their rights. 2022- In March 2022, Trudeau’s Liberal Party formed an alliance with the New Democratic Party (NDP), led by Jagmeet Singh, who openly endorsed the Khalistan Referendum on Canadian soil. 2023- During the recent G20 summit in New Delhi, PM Modi conveyed “strong concerns” about “continuing anti-India activities of extremist elements” in Canada. |
What is the Significance of India-Canada Relations?
Cooperation in Indo-Pacific- Canada’s Indo-Pacific Strategy has listed India an important partner in the Indo-Pacific region. It has marked out China as an “increasingly disruptive global power”, while referring to India as a “critical partner” with shared traditions of democracy and pluralism.
Trade and commerce – India is Canada’s tenth-largest trading partner. Bilateral trade between India and Canada stands at USD 5 billion. More than 400 Canadian companies have a presence in India and more than 1,000 companies are actively pursuing business in the Indian market. Canadian pension funds have pledged over USD 55 billion in investments between 2014 and 2020. Canada and India are working toward a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement and a Foreign Investment Promotion and Protection Agreement (FIPA).
Development Cooperation- Canada has invested nearly $24 million in 2018-2019 to support 75 projects in India through its Non profit organisations like Grand Challenges Canada.
Energy sector – India and Canada signed a Nuclear Cooperation Agreement (NCA) in 2010 for which a Joint Committee on Civil Nuclear Cooperation was constituted by both the countries. Uranium supply deal has been signed during PM Modi’s visit in 2015.
S&T and Space- ISRO and CSA (Canadian Space Agency) have signed MOUs for cooperation in the field of exploration and utilisation of outer space. ANTRIX, the Commercial arm of ISRO, has launched many Canadian Satellites.
Education Sector – Since 2018, India has been the largest source country for international students in Canada. This has helped Canadian universities and colleges to provide subsidised education to domestic students.
Indian Diaspora- Canada hosts one of the largest Indian diasporas in the world numbering 1.6 million (PIOs and NRIs) which account for more than 3% of its total population. The diaspora has done commendably well in every sector in Canada. In the field of politics, the present House of Common (total strength of 338) has 22 Members of Parliament of Indian-origin.
Read More- Forum IAS
What are the Challenges in the Relations between the two countries?
Khalistani separatist factor- It is the single most important challenge between India and Canada. The Canadian government’s Policy of balancing the Sikh assertions and its relations with India, has jeopardised the India Canada Relations.
Attacks on Indian Consulates and Indian Diaspora- The attacks on Non-Sikh Indian Diaspora, Indian Consulates and Temples have further strained the India Canada Relations.
Trade Challenges- Structural impediments such as complex labour laws, market protectionism, and bureaucratic regulations have been roadblocks for Indo-Canadian trade relations. Bilateral agreements, such as the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) and Investment Promotion and Protection Agreements (BIPPA), have been in negotiation for long time and no progress has been reached by both the countries. Before the G20 summit, the Canadian government independently halted trade negotiations with India. All these have contributed to low Indo-Canadian trade.
Close relationship of China and Canada – There is a close relationship between the current federal government of Canada and the Chinese Communist Party’s government. This has also strained India-China relation.
What Should be the way forward?
In recent times, Government of India has effectively conveyed to Canada that they cannot simultaneously have good relations with India while allowing anti-India separatist movements on their soil.
Constructive and Sustained Engagement- India will have to build a constructive and sustained engagement with the Sikh diaspora, dispel the misinformation propagated by the Khalistani separatists and showcase the sense of contentment prevailing in Punjab.
New Framework of Cooperation- There is a need to develop a new framework of cooperation that is more pragmatic and that emphasises on mutually beneficial areas, such as trade, energy, infrastructure and transport, for better Indo-Canadian relations.
Dehypenation- India and Canada must dehypenate their political contestations over the Khalistan issue and their trade and investment relations. Both the countries must look to be back on the trade negotiations table back soon to finalise the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between the two countries.
Civil Society and Track II Diplomacy- India and Canada must encourage civil society organizations and Track II diplomacy initiatives to foster people-to-people connections, dialogue and conflict resolution efforts.
Media and Public Diplomacy- Promotion of responsible reporting to ensure that media coverage and public discourse accurately reflect the complexities of the relationship and the efforts being made to strengthen it.
Read More- Indian Express, The Hindu
