Canadian High Commission to India Cameron Mackay, who had completed his term and left the country in August, has alleged that the US indictment of a former Indian government employee is linked to a ‘murder plot’ that Canada is probing. In an interview with CBC, he claimed that Vikas Yadav being probed in an alleged plot to assassinate pro-Khalistani leader Gurpatwant Singh Pannun on the US soil paints a “compelling and detailed portrait” of “a single plot” originating from Delhi, aimed at multiple targets across North America, specifically in Canada and the United States.
India has dismissed these allegations numerous times, calling them ‘absurd’ and a part of Justin Trudeau’s strategy to win votes ahead of the upcoming elections.
Mackay’s remarks mark the first occasion that the Canadian envoy – who still holds the title of High Commissioner – has publicly linked the two alleged plots: the killing of pro-Khalistan separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Canada last June and the unsuccessful attempt to assassinate pro-Khalistan activist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun in the US.
“The indictment and the charges in the United States just yesterday, and then the indictment that was released on November 29 of 2023 paint a really compelling and a rather detailed portrait of a single plot emanating from Delhi to kill multiple targets across North America, in Canada and the United States,” the envoy told Canadian public broadcaster CBC News on Saturday.
“So you put those two indictments together with the evidence that was released and the comments made by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police on Monday, and you have a very clear picture, in fact, of what has been going on, for well over a year now,” Mackay added.
Vikas Yadav, a former Indian government official, has been charged by the US for his alleged role in a foiled plot to assassinate Sikh separatist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun on American soil around the state visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Pannu was designated as a terrorist by India.
Vikas Yadav, 39, was employed by the Cabinet Secretariat, which houses India’s foreign intelligence service, the Research and Analysis Wing (RAW), the federal prosecutors claimed on Thursday in an indictment filed in a US court in New York.
Yadav faces murder-for-hire and money laundering charges in connection with his role in directing a foiled plot to kill Pannun.
The diplomatic rift between Canada and India has intensified after Trudeau and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police designated the Indian ambassador and other diplomats as “persons of interest” in its probe into the killing of pro-Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar. India termed Canada’s move as “preposterous” and part of the political agenda of the Justin Trudeau government.
India expelled six Canadian diplomats, which Canada followed with a tit-for-tat move and asked six Indian diplomats to leave the country.
The row started last year when Trudeau said he had evidence linking Indian agents to the assassination of Hardeep Singh Nijjar.
India has denied the charges since day one and has been requesting the Canadian government to provide proof of this, which Canada has not done since over a year of these allegations being levelled against India.
