Will Canada-India ties worsen under Mark Carney? Ottawa claims New Delhi has 'intent, capability' to meddle in April polls

Canada has alleged that countries like India and China might interfere in the country's upcoming general elections. This comes a day after Prime Minister Mark Carney announced that the polls will be held on April 28.

Vanessa Lloyd, the deputy director of operations at the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS), said, "...The government of India has the intent and capability to interfere in Canadian communities and democratic processes."

Talking about India, the CSIS official claimed that "hostile state actors" like China would exploit artificial intelligence to interfere in the elections. She added that Russia and Pakistan also have the potential to meddle with the polls.

Will Canada ties with India worsen under Mark Carney?

The ties between India and Canada hit a low in September 2023 when Justin Trudeau was Prime Minister. Trudeau had alleged that the Indian government was involved in the killing of Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar. However, India dismissed these allegations as "baseless".

When Carney succeeded Trudeau, there was widespread optimism about the improvement of ties between the two nations. After taking oath as PM, Carney said that there are opportunities to rebuild relationship with India.

With the new allegations, it has to be seen how India responds to these claims. India had earlier denied the elections interference claims levelled by Canada previously. "We reject the report's insinuations on India and expect that the support system enabling illegal migration will not be further countenanced," the Ministry of External Affairs said back in January.

Lloyd also added that Russia has tried to build "dissemination networks" on social media to amplify "Kremlin talking points".

Regarding Pakistan, she claimed that there could make efforts to "counter India's growing global influence".