Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh in February welcomed a statement by two Canadian federal Ministers of Indian-origin that they did not sympathize with the Khalistan demand. Captain Amarinder Singh had refused to meet Indian-origin Canadian Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan during his visit to Punjab in April 2017.

Captain Singh welcomed the “categorical denial by Sajjan, the first Sikh to be Defence Minister of a western country, of taking a pro-Khalistani stance, and congratulated Trudeau for creating the necessary environment against secessionist forces (demanding separate Sikh homeland) believed to be operating from his country.”

“Sajjan’s statement, carried by the Canadian Press in February that he and fellow Sikh Minister Amarjit Sohi, 'neither sympathise with nor espouse the Sikh nationalist movement, which is bent on creating a separate country called Khalistan in India’s Punjab region’ indicated that the Canadian Prime Minister had clearly sent out a strong signal within his party and Government that he would not allow his country’s soil to be used for any anti-India activities,” the Chief Minister said.