Reacting to the ongoing Kunal Kamra controversy, Eknath Shinde slammed the comedian and said that freedom of speech should have limits.
Canada’s spy service on Monday said India and China are likely to try to interfere in its upcoming general election, a charge that came amid its worsening relations with the two countries.
Addressing a press conference on the April 28 snap election, Vanessa Lloyd, the deputy director of operations at the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS), said that “hostile state actors” were increasingly leveraging artificial intelligence to meddle in the polls, which were announced by the new Prime Minister, Mark Carney, on Sunday.
“The PRC (People’s Republic of China) is highly likely to use AI-enabled tools to attempt to interfere with Canada’s democratic process in this current election,” she said.
China is also “highly likely” to turn to social media to promote narratives favourable to its interests – and to specifically target Chinese ethnic, cultural and religious communities in Canada using deceptive means, Ms Lloyd said.
“We have also seen that the government of India has the intent and capability to interfere in Canadian communities and democratic processes to assert its geopolitical influence,” she added.
The two countries, which have denied previous allegations of interference, have so far not said anything about the new charges.
Ms Lloyd also said that Russia has tried to build “dissemination networks” across social media and news websites that amplify Kremlin talking points.
“It is possible that Russia will use these online networks to opportunistically conduct foreign information manipulation and interference operations directed at Canadians,” she said.
She also charged that Pakistan could conduct foreign interference activities against Canada “in line with its strategic aims”.
Tensions between India and Canada have simmered since former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s September 2023 allegation of New Delhi’s involvement in the killing of Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar.
India dismissed the accusation as “absurd.”
The row deepened when India expelled six Canadian diplomats and recalled its envoy to Ottawa after Canada attempted to question Indian officials as “persons of interest” in the Nijjar case.
Canada’s relations with China have also worsened in recent years. Beijing this month announced tariffs on more than $2.6 billion worth of Canadian agricultural and food products, retaliating against levies Ottawa slapped on Chinese electric vehicles and steel and aluminium products last year.
Two weeks into their marriage, a 22-year-old woman hatched a plan with her lover and hired contract killers to murder her husband in Uttar Pradesh’s Auraiya district.
According to the police, the two accused, Pragati Yadav and Anurag Yadav, were in a relationship for the past four years. However, their parents did not approve of their relationship and forcefully got Pragati married to Dilip on March 5.
On March 19, the police found Dilip lying severely injured with bullet wounds in a field. He was rushed to the community health center in Bidhuna for treatment. However, as his condition got worse, the victim was taken to Saifai Hospital and then moved to Gwalior in Madhya Pradesh. The 25-year-old victim was then shifted to a hospital in Auraiya on March 20 where he died a day later, officials said.
Following the incident, the victim’s brother filed a complaint at the Sahar police station.
Upon investigation, it was revealed that as the victim’s wife and her lover were unable to meet after her marriage, they decided to kill the husband. The two then hired a contract killer, Ramaji Chaudhary, to murder Dilip and paid him Rs 2 lakh to do the job, the police said.
Officials said that Ramaji, along with some other people, took Dilip to the fields on a bike. Upon reaching, they started beating the victim and shot him. They immediately fled the scene, officials added.
The three accused were identified on the basis of CCTV footage and arrested subsequently. Officials also seized two pistols, four live cartridges, a bike, two mobile phones, one purse, Aadhar card, and Rs 3,000 from the accused.
The police are also on the lookout for other people involved in the crime – who are currently on the run.