Canada’s Opposition leader cancels Diwali celebration amid row

Canada’s Opposition leader, Pierre Poilievre, had cancelled the Diwali celebration planned for Parliament Hill amid heightened diplomatic tensions with India. The event, originally scheduled to be hosted by Conservative MP Todd Doherty on October 30, was organised by the Overseas Friends of India Canada (OFIC), who were not provided a reason for the cancellation.

Relations between Canada and India had deteriorated following Ottawa’s allegations that Indian diplomats were involved in targeting members of Canada’s pro-Khalistan movement, using criminal networks. In response, India recalled its top envoy from Ottawa and expelled six Canadian diplomats.

OFIC president Shiv Bhasker expressed disappointment in a letter to Poilievre, noting that political leaders who had attended in past years withdrew this year, leaving the community “feeling betrayed and unjustly singled out.” Bhasker condemned the decision as “insensitive and discriminatory” and emphasized that, while the diplomatic rift is serious, it should not impact Canadians of Indian descent who are unaffiliated with the Indian government.

Reflecting on last year’s Diwali celebration, where Poilievre and then-High Commissioner Sanjay Kumar Verma addressed a gathering of 540 guests, Bhasker stated, “This is not just about a cancelled event; it reveals systemic biases still present in Canada.” He called for an apology from Poilievre to the Indian community.