"Canada-India Tensions Over Killing of Sikh Separatist" - by CWP alum Manjari Chatterjee Miller
Canada-India relations have been rocked by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s allegation that the Indian government assassinated a Sikh independence activist, Hardeep Singh Nijjar, on Canadian soil. What are the implications of Canada’s claim?
The claim is explosive for three reasons. First, it suggests that today’s Indian government is confident enough in its international standing to take such a momentous step. A democracy assassinating the citizen of another democracy, and on the latter’s own soil, is no small action. Second, if Prime Minister Trudeau releases credible evidence for his allegations, the assassination will give many of India’s partners pause, even if they do not publicly side with Canada. As a potential justification for the killing, Indians online and in local media have likened their government to that of Israel, another partner country of the West that protects against terrorist threats through political assassinations abroad. But some experts are also drawing comparisons to President Vladimir Putin’s Russia, which would be a much more fraught parallel for India. Finally, the allegations, particularly if proved true, put the United States in a very tough spot. The United States has spent the last decade strengthening its partnership with India. At the same time, Canada is a North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) ally and a friendly neighbor. Moreover, there is a significant population of Indian-origin citizens, including Sikhs, in the United States. Refraining from taking sides may not be a sustainable long-term policy for the U.S. government.
Canada-India Tensions Over Killing of Sikh Separatist: What to Know - By Manjari Chatterjee Miller, CFR Expert
September 25, 2023 5:53 pm (EST)
Manjari Chatterjee Miller is senior fellow for India, Pakistan, and South Asia at the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR). She is also a research associate in the Contemporary South Asian Studies Programme at the Oxford School of Global and Area Studies at the University of Oxford. An expert on India, China, South Asia, and rising powers, she is the author of Why Nations Rise: Narratives and the Path to Great Power (2021, shortlisted for the 2022 Hedley Bull Prize in International Relations) and Wronged by Empire: Post-Imperial Ideology and Foreign Policy in India and China (2013). Miller is also the co-editor of the Routledge Handbook of China-India Relations (2020), a monthly columnist for the Hindustan Times, and a frequent contributor to policy and media outlets in the United States and Asia.
Photo Credit: By Unknown - Original publication: UnknownImmediate source: https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/hardeep-singh-nijjar-third-khalistani-terrorist-to-die-in-45-days-4136912, Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=74855106
