After Death Of Sikh Man In Alleged Hate Crime, India Urges Canada To Ensure Safety Of Nationals

New Delhi: India’s high commission in Ottawa on Thursday urged the Canadian government to ensure the safety of Indian nationals, expressing that it was “shocked and saddened by the senseless killing of an Indian Youth in Truro”.

The statement pertains to a case of alleged hate crime that has been reported in the Canadian town of Truro in central Nova Scotia wherein a 23-year-old Sikh man identified as Prabhjot Singh Katri lost his life.

Prabhjot Singh, who had come to Canada from Punjab in 2017 to study, was killed in the early hours of September 5 at an apartment building in Truro, news agency IANS reported.

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Truro police chief Dave MacNeil informed that officers responded to 494 Robie St. around 2 a.m. that morning, where they found Singh with life-threatening injuries.

He was then taken to hospital in Colchester, where he later succumbed to the injuries.

According to a CBC Canada report, police are treating the death as a homicide. A man was arrested in connection with the murder but he was later released.

On the other hand, Singh’s family and friends along with others in the Indian-Canadian community, fear that this was a hate crime as nothing was robbed from him, the report stated.

The victim’s cousin, Maninder Singh, revealed that he was working two jobs to financially support his family in India.

“He was so nice. We didn’t imagine that this could happen,” he said, as quoted by IANS.

Singh had completed his studies and was currently on a work visa. He was trying to secure permanent residency in Canada, the agency reported.

In its statement, the Indian high commission urged the Canadian government to “ensure the safety of all Indian nationals especially the Indian students in Canada from racially motivated crimes”.

“We have taken up the matter with federal and local Canadian authorities, who have assured us of quick and transparent investigations into the matter,” it informed.

Liberal incumbent MP, Sonia Sidhu, who is re-contesting from Canada’s Brampton South, also condemned the alleged hate crime, emphasising that they must continue their fight to eradicate it.

“My heart goes out to the family and loved ones of Prabhjot Singh Katri who was killed in Truro, NS (Nova Scotia). This is an unacceptable act of hate,” Sidhu wrote in a tweet.

“Hate, online hate, violence, and racism have no place in our country and we must continue our fight to eradicate it,” she added.

Meanwhile, a GoFundMe has been set up in an effort to send Singh’s body to India, CTV News reported.