CBC As It Happens·Q&A
Trudeau went public with India allegations because it was going to come out in the media: minister
Harjit Sajjan says Trudeau wanted to ensure Canadians had 'accurate information'
Canada's minister of emergency preparedness says the prime minister publicly implicated India in the murder of a Canadian citizen because he learned the story was going to come out in the media.
Justin Trudeau stood in Parliament on Monday and announced: "Canadian security agencies have been actively pursuing credible allegations of a potential link between agents of the government of India and the killing of a Canadian citizen, Hardeep Singh Nijjar."
The Sikh leader was shot dead outside a Sikh temple in Surrey, B.C., on June 18. India has vehemently denied involvement in his death and called Canada's allegations "absurd."
Nijjar was a supporter of a Sikh homeland in the form of an independent Khalistani state. India branded him a terrorist and accused him of leading a militant separatist group. His supporters deny this.
Minister Harjit Sajjan, the Liberal MP for Vancouver South, says the investigation into Nijjar's death is still ongoing, but Trudeau wanted to ensure Canadians had "the accurate information" about the story before it made headlines. Here is part of Sajjan's conversation with As It Happens host Nil Köksal.
What evidence is there to support the allegations the prime minister is making?
First and foremost, there is a police investigation currently undergoing and they're independent to conduct their investigation. It would be very inappropriate for me to discuss anything about that.
Why not wait until after the RCMP has finished its investigation? Why did the prime minister come out with what he said before that?
It was important for the prime minister to make the statement that he did because some information was going to ... come out within the media.
The safety of Canadians is very important and making sure that they have the accurate information. And that's one of the reasons why the prime minister went out with this statement.
You can't share the evidence with us. But how specific [have] the prime minister and other officials ... been able to be with the Indian government? Because you've heard what they've said. They've called this all "absurd" and are rejecting it outright.
Our government officials at various agencies have spoken with their Indian counterparts on this, and the prime minister has also raised this.
And I also just want to clarify one thing based on your question. When it comes to the evidence, it's the police that hold the evidence. And they, alone, decide the next actions on this.
Do you worry, though, that the prime minister coming out with this before that investigation is finished … has hampered any potential attempts to get the kind of co-operation you need from India in this?
I can assure you that the decision for the prime minister to go out … was done with the full consultation of the appropriate agencies involved.
And, again, we would prefer not to have to come out, but because if there were stories that were going to be coming out, it's important for the prime minister to make it very clear what is taking place based on, you know, the amount of information that could be provided.
Making sure to give calm to Canadians is an absolute priority for us. And this is one of the reasons why the prime minister went out, is to give confidence and calm to Canadians — and just in case somebody is trying to use certain information to divide Canadians, which we have seen many times in the past.
What do you say, though, to Canadians who worry that things aren't calm and that they may not be able to be protected by police? Because, as you well know, Hardeep Singh Nijjar was warned by CSIS. The community in British Columbia, the Sikh community, people at the heart of this story, have said they have repeatedly told your government that something like this could and would happen. So why wasn't more done to protect him?
First of all, these types of operational questions will have to be answered by the RCMP. But one thing I can tell you [is] when it comes to the work that is done, there's a lot of work that happens also behind the scenes. Some can be talked about, but most of it can't. And I can say with absolute surety that when there is credible information, a threat to someone, our intelligence agencies and our police agencies do act swiftly on this.
And right now, because there is an ongoing investigation, we can't talk about the details of the case, obviously.
[Gurpreet Singh], an independent journalist who had interviewed Mr. Nijjar, told us last night on the program that {Mr. Nijjar] had been given a bullet-proof vest. He was allowed to use that. So were there not enough credible claims to protect him further?
I'm not going to get into details of what took place and what did not take place. But I can assure you and Canadians, when there is credible information by our intelligence agencies, they work very closely with the police agencies to make sure that the individual has the important information.
Former B.C. premier and former federal Liberal MP Ujjal Dosanjh was speaking to our colleagues at CBC News. And while he doesn't condone, he said, what has happened here and this killing, he said that your government has become, as he put it, a friend of the Khalistanis, not of India.
So do you feel Canada is doing enough to draw a line between allowing freedom of expression in this country, but also making sure that it is not fuelling further conflict?
With absolute due respect to the former colleague, I absolutely disagree with his assertion on this.
I'll be honest with you. My face turns blue [from] how many times we have said this. I don't know what else, sometimes, what we can do. The prime minister, myself, many other ministers, we've been very clear on our approach with this.
We absolutely will fight for the right for any Canadian to express their viewpoint peacefully. Anybody who crosses the line is absolutely unacceptable.
We do not advocate for the break up of any other country, and especially India, and I've been very public about this in the past.
I feel for all the Canadians who have constantly been questioned on their loyalty and who they are, and in some cases just because they bring up a certain viewpoint that they might have, and they do it in a peaceful manner, and they get labelled in a certain way.
We, as a very strong democracy, want to protect our independence, our police, our judicial system and freedom of the press and also the freedom to express their viewpoints peacefully.
With files from CBC News. Interview produced by Morgan Passi. Q&A edited for length and clarity
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