In an unusual departure from established diplomatic norms, India’s High Commissioner to Canada, Dinesh Patnaik, has pushed back against ongoing Canadian national security investigations, while offering a rare acknowledgment that a “few mad elements” within the Modi government could be involved in anti-Khalistani plots. In an interview published in the Globe and Mail, Patnaik dismissed allegations tying the Indian state to transnational repression and criminal acts on Canadian soil as “fantasy”.Patnaik said that the real threat to Canada is from extreme elements of the Khalistan independence movement. He accused Ottawa of “protecting” Khalistani separatists who the Modi government alleges are linked to violence.The High Commissioner’s comments have drawn a swift rebuke from Canadian officials, adding a fresh layer of instability to an already fractious bilateral relationship. His comments come at a time when commerce minister Piyush Goyal is in Ottawa with a delegation of Indian businesspersons to advance the trade deal with Canada.Following publication, Patnaik sought to walk back some of his comments on social media, claiming the interview was an “off-the-record discussion” taken out of context, and reiterated that India has engaged in security cooperation with Canada over the past year. Nevertheless, the interview underscores the Modi government’s highly volatile diplomatic strategy, with India’s top representative openly questioning Canadian agencies.The diplomatic friction between Ottawa and New Delhi escalated dramatically following the June 2023 assassination of Khalistan activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Surrey, British Columbia. Former Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau cited “credible allegations” linking Indian government agents to the killing, which has since been reiterated by other Canadian intelligence and security agencies. The Modi government has so far maintained its innocence.Speaking to Globe and Mail, Patnaik attempted to separate official state policy from rogue actions. While describing allegations implicating the upper echelons of the Indian government as “fantasy issues”, he explicitly acknowledged the possibility that “a few mad elements” or rogue individuals may have acted independently. In making this distinction, the envoy referenced the case of Vikash Yadav, a former Indian intelligence officer officially linked by American law enforcement agencies to the Nijjar case and an alleged foiled assassination plot targeting Sikh separatist leader Gurpatwant Singh Pannun in the United States.Patnaik also heavily criticised Canada’s premier security and intelligence agencies, alleging that sections of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) have been thoroughly influenced by Khalistani separatist groups operating within Canada. “There are a whole lot of allegations within India that the Canadian security establishment is compromised,” he said, suggesting that Khalistani groups have paid Canadian intelligence officers to report false claims against India.CSIS said in its annual report for 2025, released this month, that India has engaged in “surveillance and other coercive tactics meant to suppress criticism of the Government of India and create fear in the community”.Patnaik offered qualified praise for the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), describing it as an “independent, very good organisation”. However, he quickly qualified the statement by asserting that the federal police force had historically been “susceptible to political direction,” casting doubt on the long-term integrity of the Nijjar homicide investigation.A recently released three-page RCMP intelligence assessment explicitly states multiple times that the Bishnoi Crime Group operates as a violent criminal organisation expanding across Canada while “allegedly acting on behalf of the Indian government”. Obtained through the federal access-to-information law, it shows that in 2024, the RCMP suspected that the Indian government was involved in the murder of at least two pro-Khalistan activists in Canada.It also says that India plotted to kill three other Canadians after allegedly orchestrating Nijjar’s killing. It notes that the Bishnoi gang claimed responsibility for the September 2023 murder of Sukhdool Singh (another activist designated a terrorist by New Delhi) in Winnipeg, Manitoba.Canada’s Public Safety Minister, Gary Anandasangaree, flatly rejected Patnaik’s characterisations, calling any insinuation that CSIS was compromised entirely “false”. Anandasangaree defended the national security agency, stating that the minister’s office maintains full confidence in CSIS’s assessments regarding foreign interference and transnational repression on Canadian soil.The World Sikh Organisation (WSO) of Canada issued a statement condemning Patnaik’s remarks as “scandalous allegations” and accusing the diplomat of attempting to undermine Canadian sovereignty and institutional credibility. The organisation noted that Patnaik’s claims directly contradict the findings of the CSIS Public Report and the Foreign Interference Commission, which formally identified India as a state perpetrator of transnational repression.