In the eye of a storm at home over procuring foreign-made Covid-19 vaccines after a botched plan to manufacture doses domestically, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has invited ire from both the Indian government and millions of netizens all over the world by jumping seas to "defend" the rights of Indian farmers protesting in New Delhi.
During an online event on the occasion of Gurpurab two days ago, Trudeau had told the Indian community in Canada how concerned he was over the ongoing farmers protest around the Indian capital.
"The situation is very concerning. All of us are worried about family and friends, and this is a reality for many. Let me remind you, Canada will always defend the rights of peaceful protesters. We have intimated our concerns to the Indian authorities," Trudeau said. He was supported by Canadian ministers Navdeep Bains and Harjit Sajjan on the issue.
Having no locus standi whatsoever to express views on internal affairs of a country thousands of miles away, Trudeau and his ministers were lambasted online with the Indian Ministry of External Affairs rightly terming them as “unwarranted."
"We've seen some ill-informed comments by Canadian leaders relating to farmers in India. These are unwarranted especially when pertaining to internal affairs of a democratic country. It's also best that diplomatic conversations aren't for political purposes," said a spokesperson from the ministry.
Sikhs comprise around 1.4 per cent of Canada's population and the community is well represented the country’s Parliament. The Canadian PM has often been criticized for cosying up to the Sikh extremists living in his country. It is perhaps for this reason, and also repeated goof-ups like the latest one, that Trudeau has largely been ignored by many leaders at various world forums.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
<p dir="ltr" lang="en">Trudeau's Vaccine Procurement Failure May Be The Most Costly Mistake In Canadian History. <a href="https://t.co/NQYPhn1L4s">https://t.co/NQYPhn1L4s</a></p>
— Spencer Fernando ?? (@SpencerFernando) <a href="https://twitter.com/SpencerFernando/status/1332426544736735234?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 27, 2020</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
In 2018, on his first official trip to India, Trudeau was in the news for all the wrong reasons. He had caused a major diplomatic embarrassment by inviting a Canadian Sikh with alleged extremist links to an official dinner. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi had met his Canadian counterpart only at the fag-end of his visit which reflected India’s displeasure over Trudeau’s approach in dealing with Sikh extremists.
Ironically, even as he continues to raise false alarms while sitting in Ottawa, three members of his cabinet, including Navdeep Bains, have been summoned by a Commons committee to explain how Canada’s vaccine-production plan has flopped massively despite spending a mammoth $44 million on the project.
Local media reported that Health Minister Patty Hajdu, Public Services and Procurement Minister Anita Anand, and Innovation, Science and Economic Development Minister Navdeep Bains will each be summoned to testify before the House breaks for the winter holidays.
"When the history of the Covid-19 pandemic is written, it should include a chapter about how Prime Minister Justin Trudeau “The Great Reset” of the role government plays in our lives, without even bringing in a budget. How it wasn’t done in secret, but out in the open. How Trudeau announced hundreds of billions of dollars in new government spending that transformed Canada into a permanent, deficit-ridden, nanny state, not in Parliament — but at the bottom of the stairs to his house," writes Lorrie Goldstein in the <em>Toronto Sun</em>.
At a time when its relations with China are at an all-time low, Canada can ill-afford to further damage ties with India. PM Modi had in October, while delivering a virtual keynote address at the Invest India Conference in Canada, stressed on strengthening business ties between the two nations.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
<p dir="ltr" lang="en">Canadians are hurting and they have only asked one thing:</p>
What’s the plan?
Tomorrow Justin Trudeau and the Liberals will not present a plan to get back to normal.
They will debut the Liberal plan for “reimagining” the Canadian economy instead.
My statement: <a href="https://t.co/yrktWHlQEJ">pic.twitter.com/yrktWHlQEJ</a>
— Erin O'Toole (@erinotoole) <a href="https://twitter.com/erinotoole/status/1333133424824119302?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 29, 2020</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
"The trade and investment linkages between us are integral to our multi-faceted relationship. If you are looking to partner in the field of education, the place to be is India. If you are looking to invest in manufacturing or services, the place to be is India. If you are looking to collaborate in the field of agriculture, the place to be is India. The India story is strong today and stronger tomorrow," PM Modi had stated in his address while inviting the Canadians to invest in India.
Unfortunately, if Trudeau doesn't adopt a more mature approach in his foreign policy, it won't take too long for that link to turn sour.
.
