India Says Canada Didn't Respond To Bishnoi Gang Members' Extradition: 'Our Position Very Clear On This'

India had previously requested the extradition of members of the Lawrence Bishnoi gang from Canada several years ago, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) revealed on Thursday.

During a press briefing, MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal confirmed that similar extradition requests for syndicates associated with the Bishnoi gang had been made more recently, but Canada has yet to respond.

The MEA named Gurjit Singh, Gurjinder Singh, Arshdeep Singh Gill, Lakhbir Singh Landa, and Gurpreet Singh as individuals for whom extradition was sought, stating that they were connected to the Bishnoi gang.

"We informed Canada about the Lawrence Bishnoi gang and its syndicates, requesting their provisional arrest and extradition some years ago, and again recently. However, there has been no response from Canada so far," Jaiswal said.

During the briefing, the MEA spokesperson also reiterated that Canada had not shared any evidence in connection with the killing of Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar.

"We have made our position very clear on this matter. Several press releases have been issued over the last two days outlining our stance. Since September 2023, the Canadian government has not provided any information to us," he stated.

The External Affairs Ministry further highlighted that Canada often cited 'freedom of speech' as a reason when India sought action against anti-India and separatist groups.

This statement from the Indian government came a day after Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau named Lawrence Bishnoi, who had earlier been mentioned by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) as being involved in the murder of Nijjar in September last year.

Trudeau accused Indian diplomats of gathering information on Canadian citizens and passing it to the Lawrence Bishnoi gang.

Testifying before the country's foreign interference inquiry, Trudeau claimed that Canadian agencies had attempted to work behind the scenes with India before he made the allegations about Nijjar's killing public.

However, in the same testimony, Trudeau admitted that his government had provided India with "intelligence but no proof" regarding the assassination of Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar on Canadian soil.