The Indian High Commissioner to Canada rejected allegations of involvement in the assassination of a prominent Sikh separatist leader in the country in 2023, criticizing the Canadian government and calling it “politically motivated.”

In an interview with Canadian CTV News on Sunday, Sanjay Kumar Verma was asked if he had any connection to the assassination of Hardeep Singh Nijjar.

He replied: “Absolutely nothing, and no evidence has been presented, politically motivated.”

The interview comes a few days after Canadian police stated they had discovered evidence of Indian government agents being involved “in serious criminal activity in Canada,” including links to “murder and violence.”

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's government announced on Monday that it expelled six Indian diplomats and consular officials – including Verma – after they were identified as “persons of interest” in Nijjar’s killing.

Nijjar, a Canadian citizen, was shot dead in June 2023 outside a Sikh temple where he served as president in British Columbia, the far western province of Canada.

He was one of the most prominent advocates of what is known as the Khalistan movement, a campaign by Sikhs for a sovereign state in the Indian Punjab, which India views as a threat to its national security.

His killing sent shockwaves across Canada and brought relations between New Delhi and Ottawa to a new low after the Canadian government said in September of last year that it was investigating whether Indian government agents were involved.

India rejected these allegations, calling them “unreasonable assumptions” and urged Canada to provide evidence supporting its claims.

On Monday, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) stated that they had presented direct evidence to Indian government officials, “urging them to cooperate in stopping the violence and requesting that our law enforcement agencies work together to address these issues.”

During an interview on Sunday with CTV News, Verma – the Indian High Commissioner to Canada – repeatedly stated that no evidence had been presented to him.

Verma said that India “is committed not to conducting extrajudicial killings anywhere.”

He also stated that he has never directed or pressured individuals to gather information on pro-Khalistan activists in Canada. He told CTV News: “I, as the High Commissioner of India, have never done anything like that.”

“Do we want to know what pro-Khalistani elements in Canada are doing? Yes, we do. This is in our national interest. That is all that concerns me about Canada, which is trying to tear apart Indian territories.

Verma said: “If Canadian politicians are so naive that they want me not to know what my enemies are doing here, I’m sorry, they don’t understand what international relations mean,” emphasizing that information gathering was necessary. “Everything is public.”

He added: “We read the newspapers, we read their statements.”

But members of the Sikh community in Canada – the largest Sikh community in the world, numbering about 770,000 people – said they have faced threats for decades. They accused the Indian government of trying to silence them.

“For the past 40 years, our community has been working to highlight foreign interference from India,” said Moninder Singh, Nijjar’s associate in British Columbia. He told Al Jazeera last year.

Sikh advocates in the United States have also faced threats, and last week, the U.S. Department of Justice accused an Indian government official of being involved in a failed plot to kill a prominent Sikh separatist advocate in New York.

U.S. authorities charged Vikash Yadav with murder for hire and money laundering for his alleged involvement in the conspiracy to assassinate Gurpatwant Singh Pannun.

Pannun, an American citizen, is the legal advisor to the Sikh for Justice group and a strong proponent of the Khalistan movement.

The FBI Director Christopher Wray stated: “The defendant (Yadav), an Indian government employee, allegedly conspired with a criminal associate and attempted to assassinate a U.S. citizen on U.S. soil because of his exercise of First Amendment rights.”

Sikh for Justice stated that the U.S. indictment showed “Washington’s commitment... to protect the life, liberty, and freedom of speech of American citizens both at home and abroad.”

The Indian Ministry of External Affairs stated that Yadav is no longer working for the government.