Canada's Trudeau wants India to cooperate in murder probe, declines to release evidence

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Thursday called on India to cooperate with an investigation into the murder of a Sikh separatist leader in British Columbia and said Canada would not release its evidence.

Trudeau said on Monday that Ottawa had credible allegations linking Indian government agents to the murder of Hardeep Singh Nijjar in June, prompting an angry reaction from New Delhi. Nijjar, 45, was a Canadian citizen.

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Traditional Canadian allies have so far taken a relatively cautious approach to the matter. Analysts says this is partly because the United States and other major players see India as a counterweight to the growing influence of China.

"There is no question that India is a country of growing importance and a country that we need to continue to work with ... and we're not looking to provoke or cause problems," Trudeau said in a press conference in New York on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly.

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"But we are unequivocal around the importance of the rule of law and unequivocal about the importance of protecting Canadians."

"That's why we call upon the government of India to work with us to establish processes to discover and to uncover the truth of the matter."

The United States is in touch with both Canada and India over Ottawa's allegations, U.S. national security adviser Jake Sullivan said on Thursday, confirming for the first time that Washington was talking to New Delhi about the matter.

"There's not some special exemption you get for actions like this," Sullivan told reporters when asked about Trudeau's statement about possible Indian involvement. "It is a matter of concern for us, it is something we take seriously."