New Delhi: After Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau faced flak from netizens after referring to Indian actor-singer Diljit Dosanjh as 'a guy from Punjab' in his post on X (formerly known as Twutter), BJP leader Manjinder Singh Sirsa came down heavily on Trudeau by criticising him for not referring to the artist as an Indian artist in his post. Sirsa took to X and said, "Let me correct this, Mr. Prime Minister- where one guy from INDIA can make history and sell out stadiums. Your gesture of lauding a fantastic artist like @diljitdosanjh has been totally overshadowed by your deliberate mischief through wordplay."
This was in response to Trudeau's tweet which said, "Stopped by the Rogers Centre to wish @diljitdosanjh good luck before his show. Canada is a great country — one where a guy from Punjab can make history and sell out stadiums. Diversity isn’t just our strength. It’s a super power."
Actor-singer Diljit Dosanjh is on a global tour and Trudeau's post was in connection with his performance at Rogers Centre in Downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Trudeau lauds Dosanjh
Having garnered immense praise, Dosanjh's talent was lauded by the Canadian PM who met him before the show. In a video capturing their interaction, Diljit is seen greeting Trudeau with folded hands. Sharing this moment, Dosanjh wrote, "Diversity is Canada's strength. Prime Minister @justinpjtrudeau came to check out history in the making: we sold out the Rogers Centre!"
Netizens too reacted strongly to Trudeau's gesture of referring to the artist as a 'guy from Punjab'. The criticism came in the backdrop of the current diplomatically strained relation between India and Canada, which became particularly tense in September 2023. The tension arose after Canada accused India of involvement in the assassination of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a Khalistani separatist living in Canada.
Netizens backed the reaction that came from BJP's Manjinder Singh Sirsa. @sachinarora73 said,Correct ... within india we can be from punjab or bihar or UP But outside India we are from India.. Diljit also need to come clear his stand."
