Canadian PM Justin Trudeau’s war on India by hosting terrorists
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is known for hugging world leaders tight whenever he gets a chance and keeping Indian leaders at a distance. Now, instead of hugging back, both Canada and the US are pushing him. Expelling the Indian High Commissioner to Canada is Justin Trudeau declaring war by other means, preposterous even for his milksop politics. To suggest that India’s top diplomat in Canada had plotted to kill a terrorist who enjoys safe sanctuary in Canada, a terrorist who has declared war on the Indian state, shows Trudeau’s tukde tukde complicity in separatism, and his compulsion to break up India.
Canada has accused Home Minister Amit Shah of giving the green signal to carry out intelligence operations and attacks against Canadian Sikh separatists ignoring the fact that Shah does not handle RAW, only internal security. The Canadians have fingered Ajit Doval in the plot, too. In the circumstances, it would not be too harsh to call for an arrest warrant for separatism to be issued against Trudeau in India, much like the one that has been issued by the ICJ in Hague for Putin and Netanyahu.
Canada has pressured the US Justice Department to act against reported RAW assassination attempts on Sikh dissidents, which has little to do with human rights and everything to do with politics. Like his liberal French bromance-partner-in-politics, Emmanuel Macron, Trudeau’s chances for a comeback in the next national polls are as probable as Martians landing at McDonalds for a cheeseburger and fries.
He lost Liberal Party citadels Montreal and Toronto, as his approval ratings plunged deeper than a cougar’s neckline. By all indications, he will be out of power in the 2025 election. Trudeau is now whining that the Indian government personally vilified him, but crybabies in politics are about as popular as cats at a dog show. Betting big on the expat Sikh vote and its clout in his government and business, going after RAW is his last desperate gamble.
If only someone would tell him that Sikhs in Punjab have as much passion for Khalistan as a vegan has for tandoori chicken. This was proved in the results of the May Lok Sabha elections in which separatist candidates fared poorly: out of six candidates, only two won, although Bhindranwale is worshipped as a saint in the state. And Canada is not even among the top six in the list of India’s bilateral trade partners: a trade embargo is no big loss.
Now for the Americans, the most notorious killers in world politics. The CIA is the guru of covert assassinations and toppling inconvenient leaders. It invaded Panama and kidnapped its ruler Manuel Noriega and tried him for drug smuggling; America has a serious narco problem with around 300 Americans OD-ing every day. When its national interests are threatened, the US does not hesitate to kidnap political leaders.
Killing Osama bin Laden was justified because he posed a threat to global safety, but his assassination involved invading a sovereign state by stealth. The CIA armed the Mujahideen against the Soviets and thereby fathered Islamic terrorism. It has carried out countless assassinations in many parts of the world, engineered coups in Africa and installed puppet dictators.
Time is both a great healer and dealer. Deals will be struck; relations will be healed. Soon, all this will be behind us. All that will remain is a loss of faith and a bad diplomatic taste in the mouth. Will someone please give Trudeau some mouthwash?
Ravi Shankar
ravi@newindianexpress.com