‘Will Stand With Hindus’: Trudeau Extends Diwali Wishes Amid Diplomatic Row With India
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Trudeau extends Diwali wishes amid diplomatic tensions with India, as the community celebrates the festival of lights
Relations between the two countries have soured following Trudeau’s allegations of Indian involvement in the killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar. (File Photo)
Amid a major diplomatic dispute between India and Canada, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau extended Diwali wishes on Thursday, promising to stand with Hindu-Canadians. In a message on his social media, Trudeau acknowledged the festival’s importance for Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, and Jain families.
“Happy Diwali! Today, Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, and Jain families will celebrate the triumph of light over darkness with festivities, candles, diyas, and fireworks. Wishing you all joy and prosperity during this special time,” Trudeau wrote on X.
‘Will always stand with Hindu’
In a statement, the Canadian prime minister said Diwali is especially important to Hindu Canadians – one of Canada’s largest and most diverse diasporas. “In November, as we mark Hindu Heritage Month in Canada, let us join the community and celebrate. We will always stand with Hindu Canadians to ensure their safety and security so they can freely and proudly practise their religion,” he said.
Happy Diwali!Today, Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, and Jain families will celebrate the triumph of light over darkness with festivities, candles, diyas, and fireworks.
Wishing you all joy and prosperity during this special time.
— Justin Trudeau (@JustinTrudeau) October 31, 2024
Opposition leader Poilievre
Trudeau’s message comes in the wake of controversy surrounding the cancellation of the annual Diwali event in Ottawa, which faced backlash from the Hindu community. Canadian opposition leader Pierre Poilievre clarified that the event was not canceled but had merely undergone changes in location and timing.
Shiv Bhasker, president of the Overseas Friends of India Canada (OFIC), expressed disappointment over the situation, saying that the Indian community feels “betrayed and unjustly singled out” amid the ongoing diplomatic tensions between the two countries.
Today, as Hindus, Jains, Sikhs, Buddhists and Canadians celebrate the Festival of Lights, we are reminded of our shared values of faith, family and freedom.And the enduring promise that light will always triumph over darkness.
Happy Diwali!
— Pierre Poilievre (@PierrePoilievre) October 31, 2024
India-Canada Ties
Relations between the two countries have soured following Trudeau’s allegations of Indian involvement in the killing of Khalistani separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar and interference in Canadian elections. India has denied these claims, calling them “absurd.”
India has recalled its high commissioner and five other diplomats from Canada after they were named as “persons of interest” in a Canadian investigation into the 2023 killing of Nijjar, a Khalistani terrorist who was a Canadian citizen, in British Columbia.
The relations between the two countries have plunged to their lowest level over Canada’s tacit support to Khalistani extremists among the large Sikh-Canadian population of about eight lakh. New Delhi accuses Ottawa of doing next to nothing to stop the activities of Khalistani supporters who seek to undermine the sovereignty and territorial integrity of India.
