
More trouble for Trudeau India trip over invitation error, claims of Modi snub
OTTAWA — The stunning oversight that allowed a man convicted of attempted murder to be invited to a party in New Delhi with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is rocking Canada’s ties with India just as the government is trying to boost trade in Asia.
The fiasco has left relations between the two countries at an all-time low, said one former Liberal cabinet minister, while other observers call it proof the government must jettison the photo ops in traditional Indian clothing in favour of a more serious foreign policy stance.
Ujjal Dosanjh, a former Liberal health minister, ex-premier of British Columbia and one-time provincial attorney general, accused his old federal party of being too close to Sikh separatists even before Trudeau’s arrival Sunday in India.
Inviting Jaspal Atwal to a reception, however, was the last straw, Dosanjh suggested.