Ottawa

As tensions between India and Canada escalate, Canadian journalist Daniel Bordman has pointed to a growing loss of trust in Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's credibility and leadership.

Bordman noted the Indian government's decision to recall its High Commissioner and other diplomats as a clear indication of the deepening rift between the two countries.

"There are elements within the Khalistani apparatus, they are all over this... The Khalistani elements are in full attack mode. They are taking this as a total victory and slamming India," he told ANI.

He also commented on the general sentiment among Canadians, emphasizing that vast majority of Canadians are increasingly disillusioned with Trudeau's handling of the situation.

"Vast majority of Canadians are incredibly fed up with this government. (They) don't believe the institutions, don't see the media as credible, don't see Justin Trudeau as credible. So many Canadians will just look at this, shrug their shoulders and probably even side with India," he said.

He suggested that the current state of India-Canada relations has been put on hold by the Indian government until there is a change in leadership in Canada.

"The state of the India-Canada relationship right now would be cryostasis," he said. "I think the Indians have kind of just put Canada in a cryo pod until we get a new government."

He further said that the Indian government does not view Trudeau as a reasonable actor. "I don't think they see Justin Trudeau as a reasonable actor. I don't think he is when it comes to India, especially if he's propped up by Jagmeet Singh, who's openly hostile," he said.

Bordman predicted that the diplomatic freeze could last at least another year unless a change in government occurs sooner.

He suggested that if an election were to take place, the new government might adopt a different approach to relations with India.

"For the next year, we're looking at sort of a cryostasis where relations and trade are just pushed off to the side and ignored. When there's a new government, and the conservatives come in with an anti-terrorism and pro-India attitude, I think things will light up again," he added.

The diplomatic fallout comes after allegations by Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) Commissioner Mike Duheme, who claimed they have information on certain criminal activity carried out by agents of the Indian government.

India on Monday expelled six Canadian diplomats hours after it summoned Canada's Charge d'Affaires Stewart Wheeler and conveyed that the "baseless targeting" of the Indian High Commissioner and other diplomats and officials in Canada was completely unacceptable.

This move came after Canada expelled six Indian diplomats after police collected evidence they were part of an Indian government "campaign of violence," news agency Reuters reported citing a Canadian government source earlier.

Earlier, on Monday India "strongly" rejected a diplomatic communication from Canada suggesting that the Indian High Commissioner and other diplomats were "persons of interest" in an investigation and termed it as "preposterous imputations" and part of the political agenda of the Justin Trudeau government.

In a hard-hitting statement, India said Canadian Prime Minister Trudeau's hostility to India has long been in evidence and his government has consciously provided space to violent extremists and terrorists "to harass, threaten and intimidate Indian diplomats and community leaders in Canada."

The ties between India and Canada soured after Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, in a parliamentary address last year, claimed that he has "credible allegations" of India's hand in the killing of Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar.

Nijjar, designated a terrorist by India's National Investigation Agency in 2020, was shot dead outside a gurdwara in Surrey in June 2023.

India strongly denied the allegations, calling them "absurd" and "motivated." It also accused Canada of giving space to extremist and anti-India elements in their country.