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How Justin Trudeau's Domestic Politics have Impacted India-Canada Relations

  • Writer: Sankalp Wadhwani
    Sankalp Wadhwani
  • Dec 12, 2023
  • 6 min read

INTRODUCTION


Relations between India and Canada deteriorated when Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau recently accused India of killing a Canadian citizen, Hardeep Singh Nijjar, who actively supported a separate Sikh homeland in the Punjab province of northern India. Nijjar was a vocal supporter of the cause (Hassan, 2023). Over the years, India has emerged as an essential nation due to the large number of Indian university students present in Canada, and due to Canada’s Indo-Pacific strategy. The most robust connection between any two countries' diasporas, which may have been leveraged to forge a bridge between their cultures and economies is now being withered away for short-term internal political sustenance and long-term advantages (Mishra, 2023).


For decades, the issue of Khalistan separatism has also been present between both nations. To begin with, on January 26, 1982, Surjan Singh Gill, who was born in Singapore and raised in India and England established the "Khalistan government in exile" office in Vancouver. At that time, blue Khalistani passports and vibrant currency were also issued (Sharma, 2023). Moreover, then-Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau (Justin Trudeau's father) refused to extradite Talwinder Singh Parmar. who was accused of murdering two police officers in Punjab in 1982. Lastly, the Babbar Khalsa planned the bombing of Air India Kanishka in June 1985, which resulted in 331 civilian deaths, including 80 children, Canada experienced its most heinous acts of terrorism (Sharma, 2023).


Despite a long history of Khalistan's separatist presence in Canada, both nations' relations over the past years did not hit a bottom rock but were relatively stable. From 2006 to 2015, Stephen Harper of the Conservative Party served as Canada's prime minister. During that time, there were 19 high-level visits from Canada to India, and both countries jointly celebrated 2011 as the Year of India in Canada (Sharma, 2023). During Stephen Harper's visit to India, he discussed the problem of Khalistanis in Canada at the time with the Minister of State for External Affairs Preneet Kaur (Sharma, 2023). In 2015, Modi went to Canada and signed a lot of memorandums of cooperation, as the Modi administration originally made attempts to promote harmony.



Justin Trudeau Administration


Since Justin Trudeau came to power, Khalistan slowly re-emerged as a challenge for both nations to have a strong bilateral relationship. In 2015, after adding four Sikhs to his 30-person Cabinet, Trudeau bragged that he had more Sikhs in his ministry than Modi (Sharma, 2023). During the same visit, he was not greeted warmly by Prime Minister Modi at the airport but rather by Minister of State for Agriculture Gajendra Singh Shekhawat. Furthermore, when Jaspal Atwal, a Sikh man convicted of the attempted murder of a visiting Indian cabinet minister met with Trudeau's entourage in India in 2018, critics voiced their displeasure with the Canadian prime minister's visit (Rajvanshi, 2023).


However, at the same time, Canada and India had good trade relations, moreover, for a brief period Canada under Justin Trudeau considered Khalistan a real threat. Given India's growing economic and demographic importance in the area, Trudeau saw the country as a crucial partner in Canada's Indo-Pacific policy regarding economic diversification. Both parties seemed confident that an early-progress trade agreement on cars, agriculture, and information technology would be signed as recently as May (Rajvanshi, 2023). In its yearly "Public Report on the Terrorist Threat to Canada," which was published by the Canadian ] government in December 2018, Khalistan and "Sikh extremism" were included for the first time. However, a year later, Canada updated the report just in time for Vaisakhi and deleted all references to Khalistan and Sikh fanaticism. Amarinder, the former chief minister of Punjab, who had earlier given Trudeau a list of Canadian extremists, including Hardeep Singh Nijjar criticised this omission (Sharma, 2023).


The Domestic Politics Impact on Foreign Relations


Justin Trudeau has been influenced by Canada’s domestic politics and power politics. Under his administration, the Khalistan movement's various factions have gained political clout and the ability to voice their grievances against India while mobilising resources, often with significant organisational and institutional support. This phenomenon has never been seen in Canadian domestic politics (Mishra, 2023). More importantly, Justin Trudeau has entertained the Khalistan issue at the cost of relations with India for the following reasons.


Firstly, with the notable exception of some diaspora communities, Canadian engagement in partisan politics has been dropping decade after decade. As a result, the party's reliance on the participation of members of the diaspora population has correspondingly increased (“Canada Institute Experts React to the India-Canada Dispute,” n.d.). Secondly, Sikhs have a well-deserved reputation for being significantly more politically active than other diaspora communities in Canada. However, the population of Hindu descent in Canada is slightly more significant at 828,000 and 2.1% of the total population (“Canada Institute Experts React to the India-Canada Dispute,” n.d.).


Third, Sikhs and gurdwaras are the perfect support structure for any Canadian politician since they already have connections to people and can provide funds. Justin Trudeau has benefited from his relationship with the Sikhs (India, 2023). Lastly, Trudeau, who leads a minority government, depends on the NDP, led by Jagmeet Singh 'Jimmy' Dhaliwal, to continue in office. Having gained 24 seats in 2021, the New Democratic Party (NDP) was crucial to continuing the Trudeau administration (India, 2023).


Justin Trudeau's vulnerability to maintaining his power domestically has given the Sikh diaspora a chance to influence Canada's foreign policy. There were fifteen Sikh MPs in 2023, making up 4.3% of the House of Commons. Two of the fifteen were in Prime Minister Trudeau's Cabinet and twelve of the fifteen were Liberals (“Canada Institute Experts React to the India-Canada Dispute,” n.d.). Additionally, Canadian diasporas frequently put foreign policy goals ahead of other issues. A higher level of political engagement is ordinary among Sikhs and several other members of diaspora communities (“Canada Institute Experts React to the India-Canada Dispute,” n.d.).


NDP is crucial in Justin Trudeau's statements and actions toward India. It is noticeable in the case of March 2022, when Jagmeet Singh, the leader of the New Democratic Party (NDP), and Justin Trudeau's Liberal Party teamed together to support the Khalistan Referendum on Canadian land. Singh framed the referendum as a "fundamental human right of Canadian Sikhs protected by local and international laws."(Sharma, 2023).


Hence, Canada has blamed India for interfering in their domestic politics. Jody Thomas, the national security adviser to Prime Minister Trudeau, has cited China, Russia, and India as examples of "foreign interference" in Canadian affairs (Mashal, Kumar, & Raj, 2023). More importantly, Justin Trudeau appears to have taken a very personal approach to this matter as seen by the fact that he is now publicly accusing India of wrongdoing while his internal inquiry is still ongoing (Kumar, 2023). Consequently, India’s foreign minister, Jaishankar stated, “For us, how Canada has dealt with the Khalistani issue has been a long-standing concern because, very frankly, they seem to be driven by vote-bank politics” (Rajvanshi, 2023).



CONCLUSION


In conclusion, Justin Trudeau's domestic politics significantly impacted India-Canada ties, especially regarding the secession of Khalistan. Due to domestic vote-bank politics and reliance on support from the Sikh diaspora, Trudeau put a lot of importance on Sikh participation in his ministry, which changed Canada's policy toward Khalistan and strained ties with India. This change went against the established bilateral relations. Policy choices were further skewed by the NDP's influence, which included Sikh leader Jagmeet Singh Dhaliwal, and the precariousness of Trudeau's minority government. Tensions were heightened by the way the Khalistan problem was handled, suspicions of interference, and Trudeau's involvement. This demonstrates how domestic politics and foreign policy interact, affecting both nations' diplomatic efforts and regional stability. Balancing domestic political concerns with upholding solid foreign relations is still essential for peaceful global participation.



References


Canada Institute Experts React to the India-Canada Dispute. (n.d.). Retrieved from: 


Hassan, A. (2023, September 22). Why this Sikh activist’s killing has divided India and 

Canada. Retrieved from 

activist-s-killing-has-divided-India-and-Canada  


India, T. (2023, September 20). Justin Trudeau and political power of Sikhs in Canada. 

Retrieved from 

sikhs-in-canada-546164


Kumar, D. (2023, September 19). ‘Seems personal for Justin Trudeau’: Experts reveal if 

India-Canada row will impact India’s ties with West | Mint. Retrieved from 


Mashal, M., Kumar, H., & Raj, S. (2023, September 20). What’s Behind Canada and India’s 

Diplomatic Tension? Retrieved from


Mishra, V. (2023, September 23). Ottawa’s folly: A travesty of statecraft. Retrieved from 


Rajvanshi, A. (2023, September 19). How Canada-India Relations Crumbled. Retrieved from 


Sharma, M. G. (2023, September 21). The Khalistan shadow on India-Canada ties, over the 


Singh, S. I. (2023, September 25). Sikhs in Canada and India-Canada Tensions Over 



About the author: Sankalp is pursuing a B.A. (Hons.) Global Affairs at the Jindal School of International Affairs. His key interest areas are counter-terrorism, international relations, defense strategies, foreign policy, etc.

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