PM Modi congratulates Carney on election victory; signals possible reset in ties with Canada

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney arrives on stage at his campaign headquarters, after the Liberal Party won the Canadian federal elections. Ottawa, April 29, 2025.
| Photo Credit: AP

Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney on the re-election of the Liberal Party in Canada, highlighting the ties of New Delhi and Ottawa in upholding democratic values. The comments, a rare positive exchange between the two countries in over two years, indicate the possibility of a reset in ties as the Carney government takes shape. 

Canada election results: Follow LIVE updates on April 29, 2025

Mr. Carney’s takeover from the former P.M. Justin Trudeau, who had tense relations with the Indian government, signals a warm development in bilateral ties. Last week, Mr. Carney, who was in the midst of campaigning, had posted a message on social media condemning the Pahalgam terrorist attack. Additionally, the poor electoral result of the New Democratic Party (NDP), and the following resignation of its leader Jagmeet Singh, who hosted pro-Khalistan sympathies, also suggest an opportunity to restore ties.

“India and Canada are bound by shared democratic values, a steadfast commitment to the rule of law, and vibrant people-to-people ties,” Mr. Modi wrote in a post on social media platform X. “I look forward to working with you to strengthen our partnership and unlock greater opportunities for our people,” he said, addressing the new Canadian head of government. Mr. Modi’s reference to the “rule of law” is significant, given Canada’s accusation that Indian government agents were involved in the June 2023 killing of Khalistani separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar. This allegation triggered several tit-for-tat measures, including the expulsion of diplomats from each other’s embassies.

In the first sign of a thaw, New Delhi has forwarded the paperwork for its next High Commissioner to Canada, Dinesh Patnaik, who is currently India’s Ambassador to Spain. Sources told The Hindu that both Canada and India are expected to begin work on returning other diplomats to their respective capitals, replacing those who had been expelled.

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All eyes will be on whether Mr. Carney, a former Governor of the Bank of Canada and previously the Bank of England, will restart talks on the India-Canada CEPA (Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement) trade pact, which were suspended after the Nijjar investigation began. Another point of interest is whether he will invite India as a special guest to the G7 Summit he is set to host in Canadian city of Alberta later this year.

“Carney has the opportunity to fix what Trudeau broke. India has already signalled it is willing to engage constructively with the new government. The two countries can move ahead pragmatically, rebuild trust, bolster economic ties, engage on security issues and reboot the stalled trade agreement,” stated former High Commissioner to Canada Ajay Bisaria, calling this an “inflection point” in the India-Canada relationship.

In Canada, analysts are urging the new Carney government to prioritize re-engaging with India. According to former diplomat David McKinnon, however “serious” the Nijjar case may be, it should not “dictate the entirety” of Canadian foreign policy.

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“We must stay focused on the bigger picture: an unstable, rapidly evolving global order where economic and security partnerships are more essential than ever. Letting investigations and court proceedings unfold without unnecessary political interference is key to restoring dialogue and finding a potential way out — just as it was in a related case in the United States,” Mr. McKinnon wrote in an analysis for the Asia-Pacific Foundation of Canada think–tank.

Mr. Carney’s unexpected leadership role and the Liberals’ unprecedented win are attributed partly to a Canadian backlash against the U.S.’ coercive economic measures under the Trump administration. On the campaign trail, Mr. Carney had stated he would seek to diversify ties with “like-minded countries.”

“There are opportunities to rebuild the relationship with India. There needs to be a shared sense of values around that commercial relationship, and if I am Prime Minister, I look forward to the opportunity to build that,” he said at a campaign event last month.

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However, some observers point out that while Mr. Carney represents a change from Mr. Trudeau, the Liberal Party has been re-elected for a fourth term, and many key cabinet figures have been part of the previous team that handled bilateral ties during their decline. Critics also noted the delay in his message regarding the Pahalgam attack, which came more than 24 hours after the incident and did not mention India directly.

Mr. Modi’s reference to “people-to-people” ties is also important, considering the 1.8 million-strong Indian diaspora in Canada, despite a sharp downturn in the number of Indian students choosing to study there in recent years. A survey in Canada by the Asia Pacific Foundation’s Angus Reid Institute found that in December 2024, just 24% of respondents saw India as a “friendly” country, a sharp drop by half from 2023, when over 52% had viewed India as a valued partner. An October 2024 survey in India by the television channel CNN-IBN found that 33% of Indians viewed Canada favorably, while another 33% were neutral.

“Mr. Carney is a highly accomplished finance professional and I remember his passionate commitment to multilateralism as well as to climate change issues especially. India-Canada relations under his Prime Ministership will hopefully change for the better,” Opposition Congress party MP Jairam Ramesh said in a post on X, indicating potential bipartisan political support in India for improved ties.