1. Diplomatic Row: Trudeau urges India to take Nijjar killing seriously, reiterates commitment to rule of law
2. ‘Ready to cooperate if Canada presents evidence’ — India reaches out to US, UK, Australia
3. Diplomats receiving threats, adjusting staff in India: Canadian HC
4. Gangster Bishnoi claims responsibility for Khalistani terrorist Sukhdool Singh’s killing
5. India: Women’s Reservation bill passed in Rajya Sabha with absolute majority

What Else

6. India to provide incentives worth $2 bn towards local manufacturing sectors
7. India, Pakistan attend neutral expert meeting in Vienna for Indus Water Treaty dispute
8. Pakistan PM Kakar says Canada row wake-up call on India
9. FM: Sino-Pak ties not at expense of other relations

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Diplomatic Row: Trudeau urges India to take Nijjar killing seriously, reiterates commitment to rule of law

• Canadian PM Justin Trudeau held a news conference at Canada’s Permanent Mission to the UN in New York on Thu, wherein he addressed the the allegations. 
• Trudeau reaffirmed his commitment to the rule of law as the diplomatic dispute between India and Canada escalated significantly.
• “There are credible reasons [without terming] to believe that govt agencies of India may have been involved … This issue strikes at the very core of the rule of law….We have established robust processes in place… We call upon the govt of India to engage with us and allow justice to take its course,” said Trudeau
• India accused Canada of being the safe haven of terrorists by providing refuge and suspended visa services for all Canadians. (here)
• Trudeau Presser left more questions than answers- He ducked questions on evidence; ducked questions on allies being silent and ducked questions on India suspending visa
• Biden raised Canada’s claims with Modi at G20: FT claimed: Citing 3 people familiar with the discussions at the summit, the FT said several members of the Five Eyes, raised the issue with PM Modi.
• The report added that Biden “felt it was important to raise the issue directly with his Indian counterpart“. (here)
• Canada has Indian diplomats’ communications in bombshell murder probe: sources: The Canadian govt has amassed both human and signals intelligence in a months-long investigation of a “Sikh activist”’s death, CBC News claimed citing sources.
• That intelligence includes communications involving Indian officials themselves, including Indian diplomats present in Canada, say Canadian govt sources.
• The intelligence did not come solely from Canada. Some were provided by an unnamed ally in the Five Eyes intelligence alliance. (here)

‘Ready to cooperate if Canada presents evidence’ — India reaches out to US, UK, Australia

• India has reached out to its close partners over the diplomatic row and has made it clear that it is willing to cooperate, provided Ottawa furnishes evidence to its claims.
• It was also conveyed in the ‘strongest terms’ that Canada has never cooperated when it comes to Delhi’s apprehensions about those criminal cases in India finding haven in Canada.
• This communication to the US, the UK, and Australia comes at a time when Canada has already reached out to them, seeking their support.
• They also said that Canada broke the universal code followed by all countries of not naming intelligence personnel of another country at the time of expulsion.
• During his weekly presser, MEA spox also spoke about Canada not having presented any ‘specific evidence’ to back its claims. (here)
• So far, PM Trudeau’s only proffered evidence that India ordered the murder of Hardeep Singh Nijjar is the claim that “Canadian security agencies have been actively pursuing credible allegations of a potential link.”
• Notably, when India angrily demanded such evidence, Trudeau could only reply that they should accept the Canadian allegations “with the utmost seriousness.” (here)

Diplomats receiving threats, adjusting staff in India: Canadian HC

• The Canadian High Commission on Thu claimed that some its diplomats of have been receiving threats on social media in the wake of the diplomatic row between New Delhi and Ottawa, and added that it is “temporarily adjusting staff presence in India”.
• The Canadian mission has urged the Indian govt to provide security to its diplomats.
• Security beefed up outside India mission in Vancouver: Meanwhile, the Vancouver Police Department has tightened security outside India’s Consulate amidst planned threats from the proscribed group SFJ.
• Const. the department’s media relations officer, said that police are “closely monitoring the situation” since Trudeau’s announcement, CTV news reported. (here)
• She said that police aren’t aware of any specific threats to Indian officials, but have increased police presence at the downtown Vancouver consulate.
• [Though, US citizen, Gurupanvant Pannu’s threat video circulating on social media]
• India suspends visa services for Canadians amid heightened tensions: New Delhi has suspended visa services for Canadian nationals indefinitely amid heightened tensions between the two countries. (here)
• Those who have valid visas, OCIs are free to travel to India.
• The issue is the incitement of violence, inaction by Canadian authorities, and the creation of an environment that disrupts the functioning of our consulates, MEA said.
• Trudeau staged drama in India over presidential suite ahead of G20: Report: The hotel rooms which were specially furbished by Indian agencies for the heads of the states.
• As Trudeau’s team refused to stay in those rooms, it caused massive headaches for Indian intelligence agencies, as per a report by the ToI.
• (sources)- in the Indian govt, the suite that Trudeau and his team were allotted had special security arrangements, including a bulletproof shield.
• As part of a foolproof arrangement, other security equipment were also installed.
• Trudeau’s team categorically refused to stay in those rooms without giving any reason. Instead, they opted for normal rooms. (here)
• [If this news is true, then the rumors of drugs in Trudeau’s plane, getting support. As per rumors on social media, the ground Indian authorities prevent departure following the detection of large amounts of illegal drugs on board. Someone thought they could get away with it being an official plane.]
• ‘Interference in our internal affairs’: India asks Canada to reduce diplomats as row escalates: India has told Canada to maintain ‘parity’ as they far outnumber Indian envoys in Canada, the MEA said Thu.
• The spox said that “Canadian diplomatic interference in our internal affairs is a factor” for this decision.
• India’s comments came hours after the Canadian HC in India said that it had decided to temporarily “adjust” staff presence in the country after some diplomats received threats on social media platforms.
• The ministry said the decision reflected the govt’s “growing concern at the interference of Canadian diplomats in our internal matters and their involvement in anti-India activities”. (here)

Gangster Bishnoi claims responsibility for Khalistani terrorist Sukhdool Singh’s killing

• An Indian-origin gangster and Khalistani supporter Sukhdool Singh, also known as Sukha Duneke, has been shot dead in an inter-gang rivalry in Canada.
• Singh of Davinder Bambiha gang from Moga district was killed in Winnipeg, Canada.
• He was part of a pro-Khalistani organization and was helping extremists in facilitating anti-India activities in Canada, according to Indian authorities.
• Notably, Singh was on the most wanted list of India’s National Investigation Agency (NIA).
• Lawrence Bishnoi claims responsibility: The gang members of jailed gangsters have claimed responsibility for the murder, citing revenge for the killings of gangsters Gurlal Brar and Vicky Middkhera.
• They further warned that their enemies would not survive in India or any other country for that matter.
• Bishnoi is currently incarcerated in Ahmedabad on drug smuggling and the murder case of Punjabi singer Sidhu Moosewala that are being investigated by the NIA. (here)

India: Women’s Reservation bill passed in Rajya Sabha with absolute majority

• Rajya Sabha, the upper house of parliament, on Thu gave the green light to the ‘Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam‘ [‘Women’s Reservation bill’].
• The bill cleared the house with 214 ayes, zero votes against the bill, and zero MPs abstaining from voting.
• Previously, on Wed, the bill received overwhelming support in the lower house, with 454 members voting in favor of the bill.
• Only 2 Lok Sabha members, from AIMIM had voted against the bill.
• The Constitution (128^th Amendment) Bill, 2023, seeks to meet a long-pending demand and will provide 33 % reservation to women in Lok Sabha and state assemblies. (here)

India to provide incentives worth $2 bn towards local manufacturing sectors

• The Indian govt is looking to provide incentives worth 180 million rupees ($2.2 billion) to stimulate local manufacturing.
• According govt officials who spoke to Reuters, the incentives will support six new industries including chemicals, shipping containers, and material for vaccines.
• The offer is a component of the nation’s 1.97 trillion rupee production-linked incentive scheme (PLI), which was launched in 2020 and targets 14 industries, from drones to electrical items, but it has been successful only in limited sectors.
• As only a small portion of the PLI incentives have been utilized until now, the govt has decided to transfer leftover funds to new industries. (here)

India, Pakistan attend neutral expert meeting in Vienna for Indus Water Treaty dispute

• India attended a 2-day meeting convened by a neutral expert in Vienna that was part of proceedings aimed at the resolution of a dispute between New Delhi and Islamabad on the Kishenganga and Ratle hydroelectric projects in Jammu and Kashmir.
• Senior Advocate Harish Salve was present in the capacity of India’s lead counsel in the matter, the MEA said on Thu.
• The MEA said the meeting was convened by the neutral expert appointed on India’s request under the aegis of the IWT and was attended by representatives of two.
• India has not cooperated with the Court of Arbitration process to resolve the dispute.
• India considers the start of the two concurrent processes to resolve the dispute to violate the provision of the 3-step graded mechanism prescribed in the IWT. (here)

[NEIGHBORHOOD]

Pakistan PM Kakar says Canada row wake-up call on India

• Pakistan said Thu that Western nations had failed to see the “reality” of New Delhi’s right-wing leadership after Canada alleged Indian involvement in a killing.
• Caretaker PM Anwaarul Haq Kakar linked the episode to PM Modi’s ideology of Hindu nationalism, or Hindutva.
• “These ideologues of Hindutva, they are becoming emboldened in a manner that they are now going beyond the region,” Kakar said at the Council on Foreign Relations in New York as he took part in the UNGA.
• The “unfortunate killing of Mr. Singh on Canadian soil is a reflection of that ominous tendency,” he said.
• “But for obvious economic and strategic reasons, many players in the Western capitals chose to ignore this fact and reality,” he said.

• Western powers led by the United States have been courting India for years, seeing a natural ally in the billion-plus democracy as concerns mount about China. (here)

FM: Sino-Pak ties not at expense of other relations

• Caretaker FM Jalil Abbas Jilani said on Wed that Pakistan’s relations with China were neither a “zero-sum game” nor at the expense of its relations with any other country, including the “robust” ties with the US.
• Speaking at an event of the Asia Society on the sidelines of the UNGA session in New York, Jilani stressed that the Pak-US relationship had been de-hyphenated from all other bilateral ties, and both sides were focused on “standalone” bilateral relations.
• “We believe we can have close and cooperative relations with both the US and China,” Foreign Minister Jilani told the gathering, while dilating on Pakistan’s foreign policy and its quest for peace, stability, and shared prosperity. (here)