Govt responses to Canada, US charges under scrutiny of House committee

Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri, according to members, faced a volley of questions on why pronouncements of US officials in the Pannun case had not been rebutted as strongly as was done in the wake of the Canadian allegations.

In November last year, within months of Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau alleging involvement of Indian officials in the Nijjar case, there were allegations from the US about a failed Indian plot to kill Pannun on American soil.

An unsealed indictment by the US Department of Justice (DoJ) later named Indian national Nikhil Gupta in connection with his involvement in the Pannun case. Gupta was extradited to the US in June.

At the meeting Wednesday, in which the MEA briefed the parliamentary panel on issues involving China and Canada, the Foreign Secretary, it is learnt, also informed MPs that based on evidences provided by the US in the Pannun matter, a high-level committee is probing the matter and the investigation is yet to be concluded.

Referring to Canada’s allegation of Indian involvement in the murder of Khalistani activist Nijjar, the Foreign Secretary was said to have conveyed to the panel that the Canadian government had been unable to produce any evidence to back its charge.

India has rejected Canada’s charge as “absurd” and “motivated”, and criticised it for providing space to extremist and anti-India elements.

It is learnt when MPs expressed concern about the safety and protection of the Indian diaspora and the estimated five-lakh strong student community in Canada, officials of the MEA conveyed that all efforts were being made to ensure their safety.

On China, Misri, while informing the panel that the disengagement process in Ladakh had made progress, echoed the points made by External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar in Parliament.

Some MPs also demanded an early briefing on the situation in Bangladesh, given the turmoil there following the ouster of the Sheikh Hasina government and incidents of attacks on the Hindu minority.