'A threat to all of us': Eby addresses RCMP allegations Indian officials linked to Canadian homicides, extortion
B.C. NDP leader David Eby took a break from campaigning Monday to address stunning new allegations from the RCMP that Indian diplomats and consular officials are linked to violent criminal activity on Canadian soil.
Eby, who said he heard the troubling allegations against New Delhi for the first time Monday along with other Canadians, assured British Columbians that police will be given all the resources they need to “hold those involved accountable.”
“Our province’s strength is the fact that people come here from around the world and they can be safe and build a good life for themselves and their families. Anything that threatens that is a threat to all of us,” Eby said.
Read more: RCMP alleges Indian officials in Canada connected to extortion, homicides
At a Thanksgiving Day news conference, RCMP Commissioner Mike Duheme said he was making the rare move of revealing information about an ongoing investigation “due to the significant threat to public safety in our country.”
Since Mounties formed a multi-jurisdiction team earlier this year to investigate threats against the South Asian community, especially those in the Sikh diaspora, police have uncovered “a significant amount of information about the breadth and depth of criminal activity orchestrated by agents of the Government of India, and consequential threats to the safety and security of Canadians and individuals living in Canada.”
That includes finding links between agents of the Indian government and homicides and other violent acts, Mounties say.
Eby told reporters he spoke to Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland and federal Public Safety Minister Dominic LeBlanc and that he asked for their assurance federal investigators will continue to work with police in B.C. to ensure justice is served. “They have of course assured me that will be the case,” he said.
When asked for the specifics of what LeBlanc shared, Eby said he was told, "there is credible evidence that the government of India, through agents in Canada, has been involved in homicides—plural, extortions—plural, acts of violence against Canadians, (and) acts of intimidation against Canadians with an aim of advancing the interests of the governments of India.”
“This is obviously a very serious allegation,” he added. “I am certain that he would not be raising these issues, the RCMP would not be holding a press conference if this wasn’t serious and credible information.”
Eby urged anyone who has been the target of threats or extortion to contact police and help further the investigation. “And we can weed it out, because we don’t want it here.”
Monday’s developments mark the latest in an escalating confrontation between India and Canada that kicked off publicly last year when Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Canada was investigating credible allegations that agents of the government of India were involved in the killing of prominent Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Surrey, B.C.
In response to the latest allegations, Canada announced it was expelling six Indian diplomats connected to a "targeted campaign against Canadian citizens by agents linked to the Government of India."
In what appears to be a tit-for-tat retaliation, India announced it is expelling six Canadian diplomats, including the top two diplomats stationed in New Delhi.
With files from CTV News’ Brennan MacDonald
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Live election results: With Trump's battleground wins, Harris's path to White House gets narrower
With former U.S. president Donald Trump winning the swing states of Georgia and North Carolina, the path to victory for Vice-President Kamala Harris has become far narrower.
Trump wins Pennsylvania, leaving him 3 electoral votes shy of clinching the White House
Donald Trump won Pennsylvania early Wednesday, putting him just four electoral votes shy of defeating Kamala Harris to win the White House.
Early election takeaways: Trump weakens Democrats' coalition
The 2024 presidential election already has exposed the depths of a fractured nation as the candidates navigated political shifts based on class, race and age under the near-constant threat of misinformation and violence.
'Ready for both': Canadians prepare for any outcome as Trump takes key states
Americans anxiously watched as the results of Tuesday's election rolled in, revealing a deeply divided United States as a handful of critical battleground states were still being counted late into the night.
Democrat Sarah McBride of Delaware to become first openly transgender person to serve in Congress
Delaware state Sen. Sarah McBride has been elected to the U.S. House and will become the first openly transgender person to serve in Congress.
B.C. parents sue Irish nanny for quitting on short notice
Two parents filed a lawsuit in B.C. Supreme Court last week seeking damages from their former nanny, alleging she quit on short notice and "never said goodbye to the children."
Blues forward leaves rink on stretcher after being struck in neck by puck
St. Louis Blues forward Dylan Holloway left Tuesday night's contest against the Tampa Bay Lightning and departed the rink on a stretcher after being struck by a puck late in the first period.
Lamborghini driver who crashed into parked cars while trying to pass streetcar sentenced to prison
A mortgage broker who totalled his Lamborghini and left a passenger with life-altering injuries after trying to pass a Toronto streetcar at nearly three times the speed limit has been handed a two-and-a-half year prison sentence.
Ben Affleck had this to say about his ex, Jennifer Lopez
Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck may be going through a divorce, but it sounds like things are amicable.