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News Desk: The Canadians of Indian origin on Thursday protested against the attacks by Khalistan supporters on Hindu minorities because of the ongoing farmers’ protest in India.
“We are not against the farmers’ protest but this agitation has actually turned into a Khalistani movement which is now targeting Hindu minorities in Canada,” said a protester outside the office of Jagmeet Singh, the MP from Riding (seat) of Burnaby.
The protester added, “We really expect our leaders to protect everyone without any discrimination”.
Some of the protestors were seen holding Canadian flags.
On Thursday, India had urged the Canadian authorities to ensure the safety and security of its citizens following reports that the Indian community in Canada was threatened by Khalistani groups after it carried out a “Tiranga Yatra rally” in support of farm laws.
“We have come across threats and intimidation of some members of the Indian community in Canada. These threats have come from certain fringe elements in Canada and we have taken this up with the Canadian authorities both in Ottawa and Delhi,” said Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Anurag Srivastava during a weekly briefing.
“We have requested them to take steps to ensure the safety of Indian citizens in Canada. We advise Indian nationals to report any such incidents to the local Canadian police and also bring to the immediate attention of the High Commission of Ottawa and as well as our consulates there,” the MEA spokesperson added.
A letter written by the National Alliance of Indo-Canadians (NAIC) to Canadian Minister for Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness Bill Blair earlier this month said: “There have been multiple reports of Indo-Canadians, who are critical of the arguments against the laws or remain committed to improving and strengthening relations between the land of their heritage, India, and the land that has adopted them, Canada, being intimidated online, threatened with violence including rape of women their families, and this has escalated to certain elements even gathering at the residences and offices of individual Canadian citizens.”
Earlier in February, a group of people belonging to the Indian diaspora held a “Tiranga Yatra rally” in Vancouver from Strawberry Hill in Surrey to the Consulate General of India.
The rally witnessed the participation of scores of people holding Indian and Canadian flags. Over 350 vehicles participated in the rally in Metro Vancouver.
The participants had also waved India flags outside the Indian consulate in Vancouver.
