Modi voiced grievances with Trudeau over Sikh protests in Canada against India
Canada-India relations remain strained.
Last week, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau traveled to the G20 summit in New Delhi, where he met with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, among others, albeit not in formal talks. Indian officials said that on the sidelines of the summit, Modi expressed in conversation with Trudeau serious concerns about Sikh protests in Canada against India.
New Delhi has long been sensitive to Sikh protests in Canada. In June, India criticized Canada for allowing a poster depicting the 1984 assassination of Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi by her guards at a demonstration. This was perceived in India as glorification of violence by Sikh separatists.
"They are promoting secessionism and inciting violence against Indian diplomats, damaging diplomatic premises and threatening the Indian community in Canada and their places of worship," Indian authorities said in a statement.
Relations between Canada and India have been getting strained of late. This month, the Canadian government suspended negotiations on a trade pact with India, just months after representatives of the countries said they intended to reach a tentative agreement this year. Modi held bilateral meetings with many world leaders at the G20 summit in New Delhi, but did not hold one with Trudeau.
The problems of the Sikhs in India began in the 1970s. At that time, this ethno-religious group accused the Hindu majority of discrimination and the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi of dictatorship. In 1983, calls for an independent state of Khalistan became louder and louder. In 1984, Gandhi authorized the storming of the Golden Temple in Amritsar, a place holy to the Sikhs, which was turned into a fortified fortress. Gandhi was then assassinated by her own bodyguards, and a wave of anti-Sikh pogroms swept across India, affecting thousands of people. Many of them fled the country and found a new home in Canada.
Canada boasts the largest Sikh community outside of the nation's home state of Punjab. And Canada has repeatedly been the site of protests that have displeased India.
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