The Indian Foreign Ministry said on Friday that there has been a “sharp increase” in hate crimes against Indians and other “anti-India activities” in Canada, urging the Trudeau government to properly investigate the incidents.
“The perpetrators of these crimes have not been brought to justice so far in Canada,” an official statement said.
New Delhi has further urged its citizens and students in Canada as well as those proceeding to Canada for various reasons to “remain vigilant” in view of the worsening law and order situation.
The strongly worded statement comes a day after India's Foreign Ministry rebuked the Canadian authorities for allowing a referendum on a separate Sikh state, or "Khalistan," to take place in the North American country.
Describing the referendum as a “farcical exercise,” Foreign Ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said the matter had been taken up with the Canadian authorities, who reiterated their commitment to India’s “sovereignty and territorial integrity.”
“However, we find it deeply objectionable that politically motivated exercises by extremist elements are allowed to take place in a friendly country… And the government of India will continue to press the government of Canada on this matter,” the diplomat remarked.
While India and Canada enjoy strong people-to-people ties and are negotiating a free trade pact to bolster economic links, Delhi has remained critical of Ottawa’s attitude towards radical Sikh separatists advocating for the secession of Punjab from India.
In recent years, Indian officials have repeatedly raised the issue of attacks on the Indian community by pro-Khalistani elements in Canada.
Earlier this month, the Indian High Commission in Ottawa condemned the defacing of a Hindu temple in what was allegedly another attack by sympathizers of the Khalistani movement.