Canada’s upcoming federal election has been rocked by allegations of Indian interference affecting both major parties and leading to the expulsion of an India-born MP.
The country’s spy agency CSIS warned last week that India, China, Pakistan and Iran were attempting to subvert the April 28 election by targeting Canada’s large immigrant voting blocs.
And on Wednesday The Globe and Mail revealed that three-term Liberal Party MP Chandra Arya had his bid for the party leadership and his nomination to run again revoked over foreign interference allegations.
Sources said there were concerns about Mr Arya among party officials, and that CSIS had briefed the government on his alleged ties to the Indian government, which is accused of carrying out murders on Canadian soil.
Canada has alleged that top Indian diplomats were involved in the killing of a Sikh activist outside a Vancouver temple, and linked to other deaths, extortions, shootings and home invasions, amid worsening ethnic and religious conflict between the Sikh and Hindu Indian immigrant populations.
A source also said that Mr Arya did not inform the government about a trip he made to India in August last year where he met Prime Minister Narendra Modi despite strained relations between the two countries due to the allegations of violence.
But Mr Arya said he had never been required to seek permission, no concerns were raised about the meeting by former prime minister Justin Trudeau, and claimed he was ousted due to his “outspoken advocacy on issues important to Hindu Canadians and my firm stance against Khalistani extremism”.
Conservative leader Pierre Poilierve has also been forced to address allegations that India interfered in his party’s leadership contest in order to assist him, and insisted last week that he won “fair and square”.
A source with a top security clearance told the same newspaper Indian agents worked within the immigrant community to support Mr Poilierve, although there is no evidence that he or his team were aware of the alleged interference efforts.
CSIS could not inform Mr Poilierve about India’s alleged operation because he has not applied for a security clearance, as he is the only federal party leader who has refused to obtain one.
The Conservative leader hit back at critics of the decision by saying it would prevent him from talking about issues of national importance, and claimed the Liberals would use it against him.
“What I will not do is commit to the oath of secrecy the Liberals want to impose on me,” Mr Poilievre said.
“They don’t want me to speak about these matters, so they bring me into a dark room and they say: ‘We’re going to give you a little bit of bread crumbs of intel and then we’ll tell you you can’t talk about this stuff any more’.”
Liberal leader Mark Carney has a 4.5 point lead over Mr Poilierve in national polling, and the Liberal Party would be highly likely to win a parliamentary majority if the election was held today.
Indian voters make up about 5% of the population, and have historically favoured the Liberals, while the New Democrat Party led by Sikh MP Jagmeet Singh is expected to poll well with his fellow Sikhs.
Header image: Left, Conservative leader Pierre Poilierve panders to Indians. Right, expelled Liberal Party MP Chandra Arya meeting Mr Modi last year (Facebook).
