WASHINGTON: The US has said that the Canadian allegations regarding India’s involvement in the killing of a pro-Khalistan leader, Hardeep Singh Nijjar, are serious and need to be investigated fully.
John Kirby, Coordinator for Strategic Communications at the National Security Council in the White House, addressing a news conference in Washington said, the claims made by Canada were discussed when visiting External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan met here last week.
“We’ve been clear, these allegations are serious, they need to be fully investigated and of course, as we’ve said before, we urge India to participate actively in that investigation,” he said.
The US State Department’s Deputy Spokesperson, Vedant Patel, at a separate news conference said it is critical that Canada’s investigation proceeds and the perpetrators are brought to justice. “We also have, as we’ve previously said publicly and privately, urged the Indian government to cooperate in the Canadian investigation and cooperate in those efforts,” he said.
Hardeep Singh Nijjar was killed in Surrey, British Columbia province of Canada in June, this year. On September 18, the Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in the Parliament announced the involvement of Indian government’s agents in brutal murder of the Sikh leader.
