Justin Trudeau’s nine-year tenure as Canada’s Prime Minister ended after losing support from former allies. The 53-year-old son of former Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau won three consecutive terms, a rare feat in Canadian politics.
He navigated Canada through Covid-19 pandemic and renegotiations of the North American trade agreement with the United States and Mexico under then-President Trump. Trudeau, known for promoting gender equality in his cabinets, ultimately fell from power after a dispute with former finance minister Chrystia Freeland.
Trudeau’s ties with India also soured. Here is a timeline of Trudeau’s changing relationship with India:
– Justin Trudeau becomes Prime Minister in 2015, with his Liberal Party gaining significant support from Canada’s large Sikh diaspora, including groups associated with the Khalistan movement.
– During Trudeau’s visit to India in 2018, Jaspal Atwal, convicted in a 1986 assassination attempt on a Punjab minister, is invited to official events; however, his invitation to a Delhi event is rescinded amid rising diplomatic tensions.
– In 2020, Trudeau expressed support for farmers’ protests in India, calling their right to peaceful protest ‘important,’ which India criticised as interference in its internal affairs.
– In 2023, Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a Canadian citizen and Khalistan supporter designated as a terrorist by India in 2020, is killed in Surrey, British Columbia.
– Following Nijjar’s death, Canada halted discussions on a proposed trade treaty with India.
– At the G20 summit in New Delhi, Prime Minister Narendra Modi raised concerns with Trudeau regarding Sikh separatist protests in Canada.
– Trudeau informed Parliament that Canada is investigating ‘credible allegations’ linking Indian government agents to Nijjar’s killing. India dismissed Trudeau’s claims as ‘absurd,’ resulting in both countries expelling diplomats in a tit-for-tat response.
– India suspended the issuance of new visas for Canadians and requested Canada to reduce its diplomatic presence in India, although visa issuance resumed two months later.
– Canada withdrew 41 diplomats from India in response to escalating tensions.
– Tens of thousands of Sikhs gathered in Surrey at the gurdwara where Nijjar was killed for an unofficial referendum on an independent Sikh state.
– In 2024, Canadian police charged three individuals in connection with Nijjar’s murder, with investigations exploring potential ties to the Indian government.
– Canada’s House of Commons held a moment of silence for Nijjar, marking one year since his death in June 2024.
– Canada expelled six Indian diplomats, including the high commissioner, alleging their involvement in Nijjar’s murder; India retaliated by expelling six Canadian diplomats and dismissing the allegations as part of Trudeau’s ‘political agenda.’
