The leader of the Conservative Party in Canada and Justin Trudeau’s main opponent in the upcoming elections, Pierre Poilievre, has criticised the Canadian prime minister’s handling of the diplomatic row with Delhi once again and said he has reduced himself to a “laughing stock” in India.
“Justin Trudeau is considered a laughing stock in India – the world’s biggest democracy,” Mr Poilievre said in an interview with Nepal’s Namaste Radio Toronto.
Mr Poilievre, who is gearing up to challenge Mr Trudeau in the general elections in 2025, was asked about the “bitter situation” in the Canada-India relationship.
He put the blame on Mr Trudeau and said he was “incompetent and unprofessional” and vowed to restore a “professional relationship” with India if his party came to power.
Speaking of the worsening relationship between the two countries, which led to two-thirds of Canadian diplomats being asked to leave India this week, Mr Poilievre said: “This is another example of how Justin Trudeau is not worth the cost after eight long years,” Mr Poilievre told the outlet.
“He has turned Canadians against each other at home and he has blown up our relations abroad.”
“He is so incompetent and unprofessional that now we are in major disputes with every major power in the world, and that includes India,” the leader of the opposition in Canada said.
“We need a professional relationship with the Indian government. India is the largest democracy on Earth and it’s fine to have our disagreements and hold each other accountable, but we have to have a professional relationship and that is what I will restore when I am prime minister of this country,” he added.
Relations between India and Canada have deteriorated to their lowest level in recent months after Trudeau accused Delhi of involvement in the murder of a Sikh separatist leader, Hardeep Singh Nijjar.
Mr Poilievre also criticised other aspects of Mr Trudeau’s foreign policy, claiming that the Canadian prime minister was letting Joe Biden walk all over him and that China was interfering in Canadian democracy.
“After eight years of Trudeau, our reputation is in tatters. Beijing is interfering in our country, opening police stations in Canada to abuse our people.”
“President Biden is walking all over Trudeau and treating him like a doormat and slapping him around like a rag doll,” the opposition leader remarked.
