60% of Canadians have unfavourable view of India: Poll

Toronto: With Ottawa accusing New Delhi of foreign interference, and violent criminal activity in its territory, that has taken a toll on public perception of India in Canada. The inverse negative view has more than doubled.” “When Canada’s Indo-Pacific Strategy came out two years ago, India was noted as a critical partner and that’s how Canadians viewed India, as a partner, as a friend, as a country with which we wanted to do more. Nearly two-third of respondents, 64%, said Canada “should at minimum, ‘cautiously’ attempt to re-open trade negotiations on a free trade agreement with India, a finding slightly boosted by threats from incoming US President Donald Trump of blanket 25% tariffs on Canadian exports,” ARI noted. “Canadians are being pragmatic especially in the current context of potential trade wars and tariffs that they do recognize with India’s of important global player,” Nadjibulla said. As Nadjibulla stressed, “In a democracy like Canada public opinion matters and this kind of situation where the majority of Canadians want to approach India with caution or have low levels of trust or don’t see it as a friendly state, that will have implications for any future government in Ottawa.” Bilateral ties between India and Canada collapsed last year after Trudeau’s statement in the House of Commons on September 18 last year there were “credible allegations” of a potential link between Indian agents and the killing of pro-Khalistan figure Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Surrey, British Columbia, three months earlier.