As India’s ties with Canada crumble, will it impact PM Modi’s relations with the West?

The assassination of Khalistani leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar is having a major impact on geopolitics, as the ties between India and China are slowly crumbling. As tensions rise between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Canadian counterpart Justin Trudeau, it is expected that the West will pick sides.

The escalation over the death of Nijjar has sparked increased tensions between India and Canada, both of whom have been trading barbs and retaliating on advisories issued by their foreign ministries, a political war sparked by the expulsion of diplomats from both countries.

Reason behind crumbling India-Canada ties

Canadian PM Justin Trudeau while speaking in Parliament claimed that the Canadian intelligence reports have established a link between the killing of Nijjar and the Indian government, saying that he raised the issue with PM Modi during the G20 Summit.

After Canada decided to expel an Indian diplomat from their country regarding the same, India came forward by calling Trudeau’s claims absurd and retaliated by expelling the Canadian diplomat from New Delhi, causing a strain on the already tense relations.

India-Canada ties have been put to the test multiple times throughout the past few years due to the rise in anti-India activities and the popularity of the Khalistani separatist movement in Canada, an issue raised by India several times but to no avail.

Will West pick sides in the India-Canada dynamic?

During the G20 Summit, the Western countries, including the United Kingdom and the United States, backed the stance of India through the Delhi Declaration while condemning the Ukraine war without condemning the actions of Russia, a decision that angered Kyiv.

Despite backing Ukraine for over a year, the West decided to protest its relations with India. As India has emerged as a key player in the current geopolitical scenario, it is expected that its Western allies will remain firmly by its side amid the assassination allegations.

Trudeau said that he had raised the issue of Nijjar’s death with both UK and US, and the foreign secretaries of the country condemned the killing of the prominent Khalistani leader, without mentioning India or its alleged involvement in their statements.

While the US has been firmly backing India in the geopolitical scenario over the past few years, the UK has a large Sikh population, and sticking by PM Modi’s governance in the matter of the Khalistani movement can have serious repercussions.

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