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Canadian House of Commons reverberates with echoes of foreign interference
Neither the Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, nor the Leader of Opposition, Pierre Poilievre, were present in the House during the debate that started after the scheduled proceedings had been gone through.
Representative Image / Wikimedia Commons
The Canadian House of Commons held a special sitting until after midnight to take up an emergency debate on the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) reports concerning foreign interference from India.
The debate was sought by Jagmeet Singh, leader of the NDP and a Liberal MP, George Chahal, as the House of Commons reassembled after a weeklong Thanksgiving recess.
Citing the seriousness of the issue that had been hawking media headlines besides an intense diplomatic spat, Jagmeet Singh and George Chahal, had, in separate letters to the Speaker, wanted an urgent debate on the subject maintaining that “both sovereignty and safety of Canadian citizens of South Asian descent” were seriously impaired by the revelations made by the RCMP.
Besides almost all members of the Indian Diaspora representing the ruling Liberals, the main Opposition Party, Conservatives, and the fourth largest party in the House, the New Democrats, the Green Party chief, Elizabeth May, took part in the animated discussions that continued for several hours.
Members of the third largest party in the House, Bloc Quebecois, stayed out.
Interestingly, neither the Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, nor the Leader of Opposition, Pierre Poilievre, were present in the House during the debate that started after the scheduled proceedings had been gone through.
The Debate had the Liberals-NDP combine in direct conflict with the Conservatives as the Leader of the Opposition was targeted. The Treasury Benches and the NDP MPs made scathing attacks on Pierre Poilievre for refusing to take the security test to become privy to secret information about the security of the country.
Some Liberal MPs, including Sukh Dhaliwal, went to the extent of accusing Pierre Poilievre, that his election as leader of the Conservative Party was supported by the Indian ruling party, BJP.
The Conservatives, however, not only negated the charges against their leader but also held the Liberals responsible, for making “Canada an easy playfield for the foreign powers to play”.
The Liberal MPs, including Iqwinder Gaheer, George Chahal, Ruby Sahota, Parm Bains, Ruby Sahota, Randeep Serai and such Dhaliwal, while lauding the role of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and the liberal government held that RCMP and other police organisations have arrested 22 persons on charges of extortion and eight for homicides (murders) while trying to curtail foreign interference and secure lives of Canadian citizens.
They also attacked Pierre Poilievre for his silence on this sensitive subject and held that he had not uttered even a single word on this sordid affair that was threatening both the sovereignty of Canada and the safety of its citizens.
Tim Uppal, Jasraj Hallan and Arpan Khanna of Conservatives blasted the ruling Liberals for opposing a private member's Bill brought by their Deputy Leader in the House for introducing stringent punishment for those engaged in extortions. The Bill was defeated because of the opposition by both Liberals and its then ally NDP, they alleged.
They held that they had been hearing horrific stories of extortions and threats to the lives of members of the South Asian Diaspora. Many had left their homes fearing threats to their lives and were living in hotels or other places away from their families.
The co-deputy Leader of Conservatives in the House, Melissa Lantsman, too, attacked the Liberals saying that lax policies of the ruling party were responsible for providing the Canadian soil as “playfields for these activities” She said all the charges should be investigated.
In the absence of Jagmeet Singh during the debate, Heather McPherson of NDP, too, questioned the silence of Pierre Poilievre and his refusal to go for the top security as leaders of all other parties have either already undertaken the test or are in the line to take it.
Leader of the Green Party, Elizabeth May, too, was critical of Pierre Poilievre, for refusing to take the high-security test and held that such tests were to ensure that the interests of the security and unity of the nation not compromised.
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