Canadian panel to examine ‘meddling’ by India in last 2 polls

Sandeep Dikshit

New Delhi, January 25

Canada’s Foreign Interference Commission has requested the Canadian Government to collect and produce document relating to alleged interference by India related to the 2019 and 2021 elections.

The collection of documents is a precursor to the first round of public hearings that will begin on January 29 and last five days. These will look at the challenges and limitations of disclosing classified national security information and intelligence to the public. Some of those expected to depose are the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) chief David Vigneault, deputy chief of signals intelligence Alia Tayyeb, and Canada’s Deputy National Security and Intelligence Adviser Dan Rogers. The commission will hold a second set of hearings in March to examine and assess interference by China, Russia and other foreign states or non-state actors.

The Canadian Government had set up the Foreign Interference Commission just before its Prime Minister Justin Trudeau departed to India for the G20 summit, where he allegedly confronted PM Narendra Modi with allegations of Indian interference in the June 2023 murder of Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in British Columbia.

The commission’s terms of reference, published last year, direct it to assess possible interference by China, Russia and other foreign states or non-state actors in the 2019 and 2021 federal elections.

The commission will also examine the flow of information within the federal government in relation to these issues, evaluate the actions taken in response, assess the federal government’s capacity to detect, deter, and counter foreign interference, and make recommendations on these issues, said a statement from the commission on Wednesday.

The commission will complete an interim report by May 3 and its final report by December 31.