Daily Times

The New Democratic Party (NDP) of Canada has called on the Canadian government to boycott the G20 events to be held in Kashmir and Chandigarh, Punjab, and ban Bharatiya Janata Party leaders and officials from traveling to Canada for abusing minorities and hurling threats against Canadian lawmakers. The demand was supported by the World Sikh Organization of Canada (WSO), according to media reports. The NDP leader Jagmeet Singh posted a message on his Instagram profile calling for Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and the Liberal government to boycott the G20 summit in Kashmir and Chandigarh. He also called for the safety of Canadian nationals in and outside Canada in view of the BJP threats. The NDP’s demand for a boycott of the G20 summit has been supported by the World Sikh Organization of Canada (WSO). In light of ongoing human rights abuses against minorities in India and threats to elected representatives in Canada, WSO’s letter written by its President Tejinder Singh Sidhu, said, “… since 2014, under the BJP government, India has seen a shocking rise in the number of attacks on minority communities, including Muslims, Sikhs, Christians, Dalits and others.” The letter adds: “Journalists in India have faced increasing pressure to self-censor due to the threat of legal action, smear campaigns and threats on social media, and even threats of physical attacks. Human rights groups have repeatedly drawn attention to the continually deteriorating human rights situation in India including groups like Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International, which has been forced to halt its operations in India.”