Ottawa: A Canadian Member of Parliament (MP) from Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's party has condemned the government's move to mark a year of Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar's death by holding a moment of silence in the House of Commons. Chandra Arya, a Liberal Party MP member of Parliament from Napean, Canada, condemned the tribute, saying it was inappropriate to honour Nijjar.
Arya said that the Parliament observes a minute of silence exclusively for great Canadians, who have served Canadians immensely for most of their lives, and Nijjar didn't at all fit into it, reports The Globe and Mail.
MPs from all parties took a moment to honour Nijjar, who was murdered outside the Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdwara in Surrey, British Columbia, on June 18, 2023. Justin Trudeau claimed there were "credible allegations" linking the murder to the Indian government, which has since strained diplomatic relations between Canada and India.
India vehemently denied any such involvement, and termed the allegations "absurd and motivated".
Arya pointed to a Globe and Mail investigation that highlighted concerns over Nijjar's links to extremism, his entry into Canada on a false passport, and his involvement in the Khalistan separatist movement.
The controversy has been further fuelled by ongoing tensions surrounding the Air India bombing in 1985, which killed 329 people. Two Canadian investigations attributed the attack to Sikh extremists in Canada.
