MEA on Canada allegations: India summons Canadian High Commissioner, says references to Home Minister Amit shah ‘absurd and baseless’ 

India protests Canadian officials' baseless accusations against Home Minister Amit Shah, warning of serious consequences for bilateral ties.

India had summoned Canadian High Commissioner on Friday (November 1, 2024) to protest in the strongest terms for the references made to the Home Minister Amit Shah by the Canadian officials, Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said on Saturday (November 2, 2024).

Mr. Jaiswal said “Such irresponsible actions will have serious consequences for bilateral ties.”

“We had summoned the representative of the Canadian High Commission yesterday. A diplomatic note was handed over in reference to the proceedings of the Standing Committee on Public Safety and National Security in Ottawa on October 29, 2024,” the MEA statement said.

The MEA also criticised senior Canadian officials including Deputy Foreiogn Minister David Morrison for leaking “baseless” reports to international media in order to defame India.

“It was conveyed in the Note that the Government of India protests in the strongest terms to the absurd and baseless references made to the Union Home Minister of India before the Committee by Deputy Minister David Morrison. In fact, the revelation that high Canadian officials deliberately leak unfounded insinuations to the international media as part of a conscious strategy to discredit India and influence other nations only confirms the view Government of India has long held about current Canadian Government’s political agenda and behavioral pattern. Such irresponsible actions will have serious consequences for bilateral ties” it added.

On Canadian cybersecurity report, the MEA said, “This appears to be another example of a Canadian strategy to attack India. As I mentioned earlier, their senior officials have openly confessed that they are seeking to manipulate global opinion against India. As on other occasions, imputations are made without any evidence.”

The Ministry of External Affairs confirmed that NSA had met with Canadian officials in Singapore. According to reports the meeting went on for 5 hours, but the MEA said that Canada had not issued a shred of evidence in the Nijjar killing during the talks.