A crowd in Canada is said to have set fire to a man who was recognized as an Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) spy agent from Pakistan. The individual is named Rahat Rao, and he operates a forex firm in the Surrey Central region, sources told CNN-News18 on Saturday.
Rao is purportedly a member of the Pakistani community in Canada.
The event reportedly occurred when someone went to Rahat’s office for “money exchange work.” After lighting Rao on fire, the man fled.
Rao was questioned in Surrey, Canada, in September 2023 regarding the purported murder of radical Khalistani Hardeep Singh Nijjar.
“The Royal Canadian Mounted Police [RCMP] did not publicly reveal the reason for their visit, but it may have been connected to his awareness of Nijjar’s murder,” a source told News18.
In June of last year, Nijjar was shot and died outside a Gurdwara in Surrey. The National Investigation Agency of India had classified Nijjar as a terrorist in 2020.
Following Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s claimed “potential” participation of Indian operatives in the murder of Khalistan terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar, relations between India and Canada suffered.
“Absurd” is how New Delhi dismissed Trudeau’s accusations. India has claimed that Canada’s allowance of pro-Khalistan elements operating from Canadian land with impunity is the primary point of contention between the two nations.
India has continuously demanded that Canada act against elements operating from its territory that are hostile to India.
The official spokesperson for the Ministry of External Affairs, Randhir Jaiswa, stated in a recent statement that India expects Canada to act against anti-Indian extremists who have violently assaulted Indian leaders, institutions, airlines, and diplomats on multiple occasions.
Meanwhile, the vandalism at the BAPS temple was criticised by other local elected representatives too.
The Consulate General of India in Vancouver had said in a post on X on July 24: “We condemn the defacing of BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir in #Edmonton with anti-India graffiti. We have requested the Canadian authorities to investigate the incident and take prompt action against the perpetrators.”