Canada’s Public Safety Ministry Reacts After Threats To Hindu-Canadians By Khalistani Extremeists

OTTAWA: Canada has condemned the “offensive and hateful” videos, which surfaced online asking Hindus of Indian origin to leave the country, terming it an “affront” to all Canadians and the values they hold. The Ministry of Public Safety of the Canadian government in a statement posted on X said, “There is no place in Canada for hate. The circulation of an online video in which Hindu Canadians are told to leave Canada is offensive and hateful, and is an affront to all Canadians and the values we hold dearly.”

The Ministry has also urged the Canadians to respect each other and follow the rule of law. Earlier members of ‘Hindu Forum Canada’ wrote to Canada’s Minister of Public Safety Dominic LeBlanc seeking security for the Hindu community in the face of direct threats from Khalistani elements. The forum urged for urgent attention to the community’s deep concerns regarding recent statements by designated terrorist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun asking all Indo-Canadian Hindus to leave the country following diplomatic tensions between the two countries over the killing of Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar.

Canada’s Ministry of Public Safety said, “Acts of aggression, hate, intimidation or incitement of fear have no place in this country and only serve to divide us. We urge all Canadians to respect one another and follow the rule of law. Canadians deserve to feel safe in their communities”.

Minister Dominic LeBlanc has also condemned the circulation of the hate video and said that there is no place for such acts in society. “All Canadians deserve to feel safe in their communities. The circulation of an online hate video targeting Hindu Canadians runs contrary to the values we hold dear as Canadians. There is no place for acts of aggression, hate, intimidation or incitement of fear,” he tweeted. 

Harjit Sajjan a minister in Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s cabinet also said that those propagating threats “do not embody” Canadian values. “To Hindu Canadians and Indians from all backgrounds: Anyone who says you do not deserve to be safe & welcomed in your home does not embody the values of freedom & kindness we hold dear as Canadians. Do not let others delegitimize or question your place and love for Canada,” Sajjan, Canada’s minister for emergency preparedness said on X. 

On Thursday, Canadian MP Chandra Arya had alleged that some extremist elements are “attacking” and “threatening” Hindu-Canadians to go back to India. He also urged all the Hindu-Canadians in the country to stay calm and vigilant and report any untoward incident to law enforcement agencies. Notably, Arya is an Indo-Canadian leader who belongs to the Liberal Party of Canada, the same party as Trudeau.

“Few days back Khalistan movement leader in Canada and the president of Sikhs for Justice which organizes the so-called referendum, Gurpatwant Singh Pannun attacked Hindu Canadians asking us to leave Canada and go back to India,” Arya posted on X. “I have heard from many Hindu-Canadians who are fearful after this targeted attack. I urge Hindu-Canadians to stay calm but vigilant. Please report any incident of Hinduphobia to your local law enforcement agencies,” he added.

He further expressed dismay at the “glorification of terrorism” and hate crime being allowed in the name of “freedom of expression”. “I can’t understand how the glorification of terrorism or a hate crime targeting a religious group is allowed in the name of freedom of speech and expression. There would be an outrage in Canada if a white supremacist attacked any group of racialized Canadians asking them to get out of our country. But apparently, this Khalistani leader can get away with this hate crime,” he said.

Ties between India and Canada came under strain after Trudeau on Monday speaking in Canada’s lower house of Parliament alleged India’s involvement in the killing of Hardeep Nijjar in June this year in Surrey, British Columbia.

India has outrightly rejected Trudeau’s allegations as “absurd” and “motivated”. Ottawa expelled a senior Indian diplomat over the mater and New Delhi, in a reciprocal move then expelled a senior Canadian diplomat. Amid the row, India has also suspended visa services for Canadian nationals. The Ministry of External Affairs on Thursday however said that no information has been shared by Canada regarding the killing of Nijjar.

In a news conference in New York on Thursday the Canadian PM again failed to present any evidence to back Canadian claims and reiterated there were “credible reasons” to believe that India was linked to the death of Nijjar. Khalistan Tiger Force chief Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a designated terrorist in India, was gunned down outside a Gurdwara, in a parking area in Canada’s Surrey, British Columbia on June 18.