'Baseless, Unacceptable' Says India of Canadian Claims on Dinner Invite to Terrorist
The MEA was reacting to Justin Trudeau's defence of remarks made by an unnamed Canadian security official who questioned why Jaspal Atwal was taken off India's travel blacklist.
Jaspal Atwal (far right) with Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau. Atwal was convicted of tyring to assassinate a Punjab minister in Vancouver. Credit: Facebook/Media Waves
New Delhi: India has termed as “baseless” and “unacceptable” the allegation that "rogue political elements in India may have orchestrated the embarrassing invitation" of a convicted terrorist to a formal dinner as a way of sabotaging the recent visit to India of Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
The suggestion that the Indian government should also be asked about the removal of the man, Jaspal Atwal, from the blacklist which allowed him to travel was made by “a senior government official” to the Canadian media.
The claim led to the grilling of Trudeau by opposition Conservative MPs during the question period in parliament in Ottawa on Tuesday.
“The briefing to media on the Jaspal Atwal affair included the theory, which was advanced by a national security official, that India was somehow complicit in organising this invitation. Does the prime minister agree with those allegations?” asked Andrew Scheer, opposition leader.
Defending the “professional, non-partisan public service”, Trudeau replied, “When one of our top diplomats and security officials says something to Canadians, it is because they know it to be true”.
Opposition MPs identified the anonymous official as Canada’s national security advisor, Daniel Jean.
Here in India, there was a strong reaction to the latest statements out of Ottawa, with the Ministry of External Affairs pushing back on the Canadian prime minister's response.
Stating that India had noted the parliamentary exchange, MEA spokesperson Raveesh Kumar asserted:
“Let me categorically state that the Government of India, including the security agencies, had nothing to do with the presence of Jaspal Atwal at the event hosted by the Canadian high commissioner in Mumbai or the invitation issued to him for the Canadian high commissioner's reception in New Delhi. Any suggestion to the contrary is baseless and unacceptable”
The Daily Star had a slightly different account of the briefing:
"[In parliament], public safety minister, Ralph Goodale, deflected a barrage of questions from Conservatives demanding “proof” of suggestions in some media reports that the Liberal government had blamed the Indian government for trying to “sabotage” the Trudeau visit.
When the Star had asked those same questions last week of a senior Canadian official who spoke on condition of anonymity, the answer was: “I want to be very clear: I am not saying that the government of India set us up.”
However the official did suggest that there are “people in India” who would benefit from fuelling the controversy over whether the Trudeau government is “complacent on terrorism” — an allegation the Liberal government flatly denies."
The Canadian prime minister and his entire family had been on a week-long, multi-city tour which had garnered much criticism at home due to its length. There were negative headlines in the media over the reported ‘snub’ by Prime Minister Modi in not receiving the Trudeau family at the airport and the lack of a welcome by the chief ministers of two of the three Indian states he visited – Uttar Pradesh and Gujarat, both of which are ruled by the Bharatiya Janata Party.
The Canadian government’s alleged soft approach to Khalistani supporters was brought up at the bilateral level, Indian officials told the media. This matter became magnified when it was reported that Jaspal Atwal – who was convicted for an attempt to kill a Punjab government minister in Vancouver in 1986, Malkit Singh Sidhu – was invited to reception by Canadian high commissioner. He was photographed with the Canadian primne minister's wife, Sophie Gregoire Trudeau, at a dinner in Mumbai. Following the media brawl, the dinner invitation to Atwal was rescinded.
A backbencher member of the ruling party claimed responsibility for having suggested Atwal’s name to dine with Trudeau during the India visit.
I want to again apologize for my role in recent unfortunate events. Moving forward, I will be exercising better judgment. As I don't want to distract from the good work of the Pacific Caucus, I will be stepping down as caucus chair.
— Randeep S. Sarai (@randeepssarai) February 28, 2018
In an interview to the Canadian media, Atwal claimed that he withdrew himself to avoid embarrassing the PM. He also noted that he was friends with Trudeau, but this was denied by the prime minister’s office.
Atwal had visited India last year in January and August. His previous visits to India had been in 2002 and 1999.
While Atwal said that he had been blacklisted earlier, he claimed that government of India had “nothing to do with anything” in his latest visit to India.
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