Canada: “Trudeau incompetent…will restore ties with India,” says Oppn chief
Virendra Pandit
New Delhi: Canada Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is ‘incompetent and unprofessional’, Conservative Party and opposition leader Pierre Poilievre said on Tuesday and vowed to ‘restore relationship with New Delhi’ if he becomes the next PM.
“We need a professional relationship with the Indian government. India is the largest democracy on Earth. And it’s fine to have our disagreements and to hold each other accountable, but we have to have a professional relationship, and that is what I will restore when I’m Prime Minister of this country,” Poilievre said in an interview with Namaste Radio Toronto.
Calling Trudeau “incompetent and unprofessional,” he recalled that Canada is not just embroiled in a row with India but also has major disputes with almost every major power in the world.
The comment came days after India virtually forced Canada to withdraw 41 of 62 diplomats and their dependents.
Trudeau has had a tough year at home and on the global stage, pushing his support as low as it has ever been.
In August, he announced his separation from his wife of 18 years. The Canadian economy is stressed with interest rates seemingly entrenched at a 22-year high and people reeling under a high cost of living and a deepening housing crisis.
Internationally, Trudeau’s bombshell announcement last month linking Indian agents to the murder of a Sikh separatist leader in British Columbia has put Canada in an awkward position with allies who are seeking closer ties with New Delhi to counter China’s rise.
Canada alleged India’s involvement in the killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a Canadian Sikh separatist leader linked with the Khalistan movement, in suburban Vancouver in June. India denied involvement, accusing Canada of harboring separatists, and took diplomatic steps to protest the accusation.
Last month, the Conservatives led the Liberals 39 percent to 30 percent, an Ipsos poll showed. Some 60 percent of Canadians want Trudeau to step down to allow Liberal Party members to pick a new leader, up 6 points compared with December 2022, the media reported.
