The RCMP turned a blind eye to the presence of an ex-terrorist

Canadian police blamed for Justin Trudeau reception in India

Federal police are severely blamed for failing to warn Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's bodyguards of the presence of an ex-terrorist at an official reception in Canada during the famous trip to India.

In fact, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) did not even consider the presence of the man in question, Jaspal Atwal, to be a threat.

"That the RCMP had information about Mr. Atwal's criminal record and serious history of violent acts [...] should have been considered a risk to the safety of the Prime Minister and his Delegation ", wrote in a report an ultra-secret special committee dealing with national security and intelligence.

The review conducted by the Parliamentary Committee on National Security and Intelligence (CPSNR) revealed "a number of shortcomings" in the Prime Minister's security.

In addition, it was noted that "there is no systematic verification of guest lists at events abroad".

redacting

The 55-page report on allegations of foreign interference during Mr. Trudeau's trip to India was eagerly awaited. But the opposition regrets that long sections of the document unveiled Monday are redacted.

"We can see that there are elements that are extremely disturbing in this report," said Alain Rayes, Conservative MP for Richmond-Arthabaska. The unfortunate thing is that we do not have access to all the information. "

The Prime Minister's long trip to India in February turned into a fiasco. The Trudeau family wearing multiple traditional costumes was strongly criticized, but especially the presence of a former Sikh extremist at a Canadian reception that derailed the official trip.

To defend itself, the RCMP admits that "mistakes were made because the procedures in place were not followed," reads the report.

"Lack of elements"

The Ad Hoc Committee considered, among other things, allegations of foreign interference during the displacement.

The then prime minister's national security advisor, Daniel Jean, blamed Indian government extremist factions for invitations to Mr. Atwal.

However, all the conclusions of this section in the report have been deleted.

"We were looking for answers to several questions and finally, it lacks so many elements, it raises even more questions than it answers," plagued New Democrat Alexandre Boulerice Montreal.

The committee studied some 3,000 pages of documents and met with several senior government witnesses to write this report.

WHO IS JASPAL ATWAL?

• He was sentenced to 20 years in prison in 1986 for attempting to assassinate an Indian minister in Canada.
• During the trip to India, he participated in an evening during which he was photographed with Sophie Grégoire Trudeau, the wife of the Prime Minister of Canada.
• Her invitation to another reception on the same trip was withdrawn when her presence was reported in the media.