Canada drops references to Sikh extremism; Amarinder fumes

Chandigarh: Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh Sunday protested the Canadian government, led by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, removing all references to Sikh extremism from its 2018 report on terrorism which had earlier listed it as one of the top five terrorist threats to the country.

The 2018 report on terrorism, first released in December last year, drew the ire of the Sikh community at the time of its release as it was the first time it listed Sikh extremism as one of the top five extremist threats in Canada, the Toronto-based CBC news said.

Singh protested the Trudeau administration's decision, saying it "succumbed to domestic political pressure".

"The move is a threat to Indian and global security," he said.

Amarinder said the "knee-jerk decision" by the ruling Canadian Liberal Party was aimed at protecting its political interests in an election year. It could have serious consequences for the Indo-Canadian relations in the long run, Singh said.