Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will remain in power but with a minority government that will require the support of a smaller left-leaning party, official results showed on Monday after a hard-fought battle in which he was dogged by scandals.
The Liberals had won or were leading in 156 out of 338 seats as of midnight EDT (0400 GMT on Tuesday), according to Elections Canada. That put the Liberals far short of the 170 seats needed for a second straight majority government.
Prime Ministerial candidate Jagmeet Singh, who heads the second-largest opposition party -the New Democratic Party (NDP) -in Canada. Jagmeet Singh aka Jimmy Dhaliwal, born in 1979 to immigrant Indian parents in Scarborough, Canada, is a lawyer and politician serving as leader of the NDP since 2017 and as a Member of Parliament since 2019.
Jagmeet alleged support for Sikh separatist groups
The NDP leader has more than once openly voiced his support for Sikh separatists in Canada, earning him the tag of being ‘pro-Khalistan’.
In 2013, Singh was denied a visa to India for criticising New Delhi's human rights record, in turn becoming the first western legislator ever to be denied entry into the country.
With this being the background, his emergence as a political force could pose a threat to Indo-Canadian ties.
Also Read: Canada Elections 2019: Justin Trudeau wins but with minority government, Donald Trump congratulates
Even with Trudeau in charge, India perception has been that Canada is doing little to stop those supporting the Khalistan cause. Current Canadian Defence Minister Harjit Singh Sajjan was in fact branded a ‘Khalistani sympathiser’ by Punjab CM Amarinder Singh.
Trudeau delegation during his unofficial 2018 India visit included Sajjan which had led to a great deal of heartburn.
“It is well known that India is not well disposed to the separatists among the Canadian Sikhs. This is irrespective of who is in power in Canada and New Delhi. Officially, the Trudeau government did not show bias, but at the domestic level - and India is well aware of this - pro-Khalistan elements have continued to be hostile to India.