New Delhi, May 6 – India has lodged a formal protest with Canada after a pro-Khalistan rally in Toronto used inflammatory slogans and displayed derogatory depictions of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and senior government officials, the Indian government said on Monday.
The demonstration, held on May 4, included slogans such as “Kill India” and called for the expulsion of Canadians of Indian origin, according to Indian officials. The event also featured religiously charged messaging and visual portrayals that New Delhi described as “unacceptable.”
“We have conveyed our concerns in the strongest terms to the Canadian High Commission in New Delhi regarding the parade held in Toronto where unacceptable imagery and threatening language were used against our leadership and Indian citizens residing in Canada,” an Indian government source said.
The protest marks the first formal diplomatic communication between the two countries since Mark Carney was elected as Canada’s new prime minister last week. Modi had earlier congratulated Carney, expressing hopes of strengthening bilateral ties based on shared democratic values and people-to-people connections.
Relations between India and Canada have been strained since September 2023, when then-Prime Minister Justin Trudeau accused Indian agents of involvement in the killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a Canadian citizen and pro-Khalistan preacher. India denied the allegations, and tensions escalated further with repeated Indian objections to the growing visibility of Khalistan separatist movements in Canada.
India’s External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar had previously criticized the Trudeau government for “vote bank politics” and accused it of tolerating extremist elements for domestic political gain. In October 2024, India recalled its High Commissioner Sanjay Kumar Verma from Ottawa as bilateral ties deteriorated further.
