Why Trudeau is singing a different tune now

Anyway, that doesn't matter now. Trudeau has already done the damage. The only question is - why is he dialling down? To answer that, we need to look at some recent developments. None of them look good for Trudeau. 

Number one: Hardeep Singh Nijjar had links to Canadian intelligence. We are not saying this, Nijjar's son is. He says his father used to meet with Canadian spooks frequently. Just how frequent? Two to three times a week. These meetings began in February 2023. There was one meeting just two days before his murder. There was another scheduled after his death.  

What were these meetings about? Surely not his security. You would discuss security with the police or the local administration. Why would you discuss it with spies? So clearly, there was something more at play. And what is Canada saying about this? Nothing as usual - it's all ‘under investigation’.  

More from Opinion

But these claims raise an uncomfortable question for Canada. Was Nijjar a Canadian asset? Did Canadian spies weaponise him? According to Indian sources - it's likely. Indian sources believe that Nijjar could have been working with Canadian intelligence. His son's claims give credibility to that suspicion. 

Number two: Trudeau's double standard has been questioned. In 2020, a Baloch activist was killed in Canada. Her name was Karima Baloch. She was kidnapped and later found dead. Most people pointed fingers at Pakistan's spy agency, the Inter-Service Intelligence, or ISI. Did Trudeau stand in parliament and accuse Pakistan? No, he did not. May be the Baloch vote bank wasn't big enough. 

But now, Karima Baloch's husband is questioning Trudeau. He says Pakistan's ISI murdered her. He also wants Canada to reopen the case. Baloch rights organisations are saying the same: "Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s conspicuous silence regarding the unexplained death of Karima Baloch stands in stark contrast to his impassioned speeches concerning the shooting death of  Hardeep Singh Nijjar". 

Hard to argue with that. So much anger over a potential link, yet, so much negligence after a mysterious death. 

Number three: India's foreign minister S Jaishanakar met US Secretary of State Antony Blinken this week. Did they discuss the Canada issue? Well, the official statement does not mention it. It talks about the G20, space and defence but it does not mention Canada. That doesn't mean Canada did not come up. 

India's foreign minister says he did talk about Canada - both with Blinken and with US national security adviser Jake Sullivan. Jaishankar elaborated on India's concerns. He said Canada has a permissive attitude towards extremism.  

And what did Blinken say? Reports say he urged India to cooperate with Canada. This is not new. The US has asked India to cooperate multiple times. So why not include it in the statement? Maybe the US wants quiet diplomacy. Maybe they wanted to focus on the positives only.  

Either way, it's not a good look for Trudeau. He said Blinken would raise the issue with Jaishankar. But the statement doesn't even mention it. So much for Canada's closest ally and friend! 

Number four is the support for India. We are not sure Trudeau expected this but domestically, Indians have rallied behind the government. Opposition parties, civil society, and even hackers. This week, the website of Canada's armed forces was hacked - it was disabled for two hours. The cyber-attack was claimed by the Indian cyber force, a pro-India hacking group.  

Of course, India had nothing to do with this. These hackers operate outside official control, but who knows! Maybe Trudeau will find a potential link here.  

India's neighbours are also rallying against Canada. Sri Lanka was the first to speak out. Their foreign minister called Trudeau's allegations outrageous. He also said Canada harbours terrorists. Bangladesh is now saying the same. Here’s what its foreign minister said: "The murderers can go to Canada and take shelter, and they can have a wonderful life while those they killed, their relatives are suffering". 

Again, hard to argue with that. The fact is, Justin Trudeau is isolated. Maybe the US has supported him behind closed doors. But in public, they have not. And they won't unless he offers proof. it's been 12 days since Trudeau made his allegations. We are still waiting for the evidence. 

So, the choice is now his. He can keep spending political capital on this issue or he can dial down. He can handle this maturely and diplomatically. Trudeau may have fired the first shot in this face-off but he is now in defence mode. The media, the Indian government, activists, everyone is questioning his charges or his past hypocrisy. So does he retreat or push forward? What he chooses could decide the future of India-Canada relations. Maybe his political future too.