A party leader, on the condition of anonymity, however accused Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau of “playing politics” Nijjar’s death to improve his prospects in the upcoming federal elections.

“We are for the sovereignty, unity and security of the country. India has done the right thing by reacting sharply. We know why he (Trudeau) is doing this. He is trying to appease one community as he has nothing to offer on issues like cost of living, healthcare and rising crime rates in Canada,” the leader said, adding that the party stood with the Centre’s decision to expel Canadian diplomats.

Mann had come under fire from the Opposition for his silence on the issue in September last year, when ties between the two countries first turned frosty following Trudeau’s claims in Canadian Parliament that India was involved in the June 2023 killing of Nijjar in Surrey.

The issue is important for the AAP as it is seen to enjoy the support of the NRI community and had received a boost after a large section of the diaspora flew down to Punjab to campaign for the party in the 2017 Assembly elections. While the AAP had lost the elections at the time, winning only 20 of the 117 seats, in 2022, the AAP had contested again and stormed to power, winning 91 seats, again getting the support of the NRI community.

At the same time, the NRI support for it had drawn accusations against the AAP of not being too discerning in who backed it, including pro-Khalistani elements.

Following the AAP government’s silence last year when the Nijjar row first broke out, Leader of Opposition in the Punjab Assembly Partap Singh Bajwa had attacked it for “not saying a word”. Congress leader Sukhpal Singh Khaira had questioned the CM, saying: “Mann claims to represent 3 crore people of Punjab but has not spoken a word on an issue which affects lakhs of Punjabis living in Canada, especially youngsters. Why has he not spoken out when the media is trying to paint the Sikhs as Khalistanis?”