The Australia Today founder claimed Khalistani terrorist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun put his pictures online and told his supporters to harm them in different ways

An Australian media outlet, The Australia Today, has faced a ban in Canada shortly after airing a press conference featuring India's External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar and Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong. The ban occurred amid heightened diplomatic tensions between India and Canada, particularly concerning allegations of Indian involvement in the assassination of Khalistani separatist leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar in British Columbia.

The Canada government blocked The Australia Today's social media accounts just hours after it broadcast the press conference where Jaishankar criticized Canada's handling of Khalistani extremism and alleged surveillance of Indian diplomats. He stated that Canada has allowed anti-India elements to flourish within its borders.

On Thursday, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) also lambasted Canada for its "hypocrisy towards freedom of speech" following the blocking of 'The Australia Today' in the country.

In an interview with ANI, Mr Bhardwaj opened up about how their supporters notified them about not being able to access the outlet's content in Canada. After that, they found out that the press conference and interview of EAM Jaishankar went off the social media platform.

"We were notified by a lot of readers, followers of our page that they are not able to watch or view our content on Facebook and Instagram which they were able to watch like 10-15 minutes back and now they were not. They were trying to share it with their friends and colleagues and all of a sudden the press conference and the interview went off from the Facebook page and there was a notification written there that this content was not available for viewing in Canada by the order of Canadian government legislation," he said.

Jitarth Jai Bharadwaj, the managing editor of The Australia Today, condemned the ban as a "murder of free press" and questioned the Canadian government's commitment to upholding the rights of the Hindu community in Canada, which he claims faces increasing threats and violence. Bharadwaj expressed determination to continue reporting on issues affecting the Indian diaspora despite these restrictions.

India's Ministry of External Affairs expressed surprise at Canada's actions, labelling them hypocritical regarding freedom of speech. They highlighted that such measures undermine democratic values and press freedom. The spokesperson remarked that these actions reflect a pattern of Canada making unsubstantiated allegations against India.

The diplomatic relationship between India and Canada has been strained since Trudeau accused Indian agents of involvement in Nijjar's murder. This accusation has been firmly denied by India, which has called it baseless. The situation escalated further with mutual expulsions of diplomats and increased scrutiny over each other's actions.

The blocking of The Australia Today raises significant concerns about media freedom in Canada, particularly regarding how it addresses content related to sensitive geopolitical issues. The incident underscores the ongoing tensions between India and Canada, which may have broader implications for their diplomatic relations moving forward.