B.C. Premier suspects Ottawa holding on to information about foreign interference

British Columbia Premier David Eby says he "strongly" suspects the federal government is holding back information that could help the province protect its residents with connections to India from foreign interference.

Eby says Public Safety Minister Dominic LeBlanc has reached out, saying Ottawa wants to make sure the province has the details it needs to keep its residents safe, "but there has not been good information sharing."

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau revealed Monday that Canadian intelligence services were investigating "a potential link"between the Indian government and the murder of Sikh advocate Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Surrey, B.C., in June.

In response to the killing, Eby says the priority should be protecting the criminal prosecution process so people can be held accountable, but on the broader issue of ensuring community safety, there's "a long way to go to share that information."

Eby says people in B.C. have been "feeling pressure from India,"and he believes Ottawa has information through agencies including the RCMP and the Canadian Security Intelligence Service that could help respond to foreign interference.

WATCH | Eby calls on Ottawa to share more information with B.C.:

B.C. premier says province needs federal intelligence to protect diaspora communities

1 year ago

Duration 1:09

David Eby called on Ottawa to improve information sharing with the province, CSIS and RCMP in the wake of allegations of foreign interference in the killing of Sikh leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Surrey.

The premier says everything he knows about Nijjar's killing is "in the public realm,"despite a briefing with the CSIS director that he described as frustrating because there wasn't more concrete information.

"I understand there may need to be reform around the act that governs CSIS in order for them to be able to share this information,"Eby told media.

"If that's what's required, let's make it happen, because the only way that we're going to make traction on this is by the federal government trusting the provincial government with information and being able to act on it in our local communities.''

Eby made the remarks during a media question-and-answer session after addressing local politicians at the Union of B.C. Municipalities conference in Vancouver.

Nijjar was a prominent supporter of the Khalistan separatism movement that advocates for a Sikh homeland in India's Punjab province. He had been working to organize what's been described asan unofficial referendum among the Sikh diaspora on independence from India at the time of his killing.

India designated Nijjar as a terrorist in 2020, an accusation he had denied.

Canada and India expelled each other's diplomats in the fallout of Trudeau's announcement, and India has halted visa services in Canada.

India's government has denied the accusation as "absurd and motivated."