Indian businessman linked to intelligence, foreign interference in Canada: report

• Ankit Srivastava serious threat to Canada, say immigration officials.
• Fake media publications aimed to publish content critical of Pakistan.
• Canada grappling with offensive of alleged interference from India.
  

Canadian national security officials have recently alleged that the Srivastava Group, an Indian business organisation based in Canada, and its senior executive Ankit Srivastava, have been involved in secretive activities.

The group, which claims to operate in Belgium, Switzerland, and Canada, owns several businesses in the newspaper and oil and gas sectors.

However, public records obtained by Global News reveal a troubling connection between Srivastava and the Indian intelligence.

According to the Canadian news outlet, the agencies had "tasked" the Srivastava Group's vice chair with influencing Canadian politicians in 2009.

Srivastava was instructed to identify "random Caucasian politicians" and provide them with financial support and propaganda material to sway their positions on issues affecting India, the Global News reported citing a 2015 report from the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS).

In a subsequent report in 2021, CSIS wrote that Srivastava's company had been accused of registering fake websites that presented themselves as news outlets, some of them Canadian.

"The objective of these fake media publications is to push a pro-India rhetoric and publish content that is critical of Pakistan," added the CSIS report, which was classified secret.

Immigration officials in Canada declared him a "serious threat to Canada" and barred him from the country over concerns that Srivastava could taint elections.

"The information before me continues to suggest that the Srivastava Group maintained multiple fake news websites, some of which purported to be Canadian in origin," the immigration department wrote.

"These websites, I argue, could be used to conduct operations in Canada to influence public opinion and the information available to voters, in effect compromising the normal functioning of Canadian government and electoral processes."

This case comes at a time when Canada is grappling with a significant offensive of alleged foreign interference from the Indian government, which reportedly involves disinformation, political meddling, and violence.

Indian agents may have engaged in providing "illicit financial support" to influence political candidates in favour of pro-India agendas, Global News reported citing a January 28 report from Canada's foreign interference commission.

The inquiry did not name names but the government's allegations about Srivastava, and his responses, are detailed in hundreds of pages of public documents filed in the Federal Court in Ottawa.

The records show Canadian officials have taken the fight against Indian foreign interference and disinformation to a new front: the immigration system.

Srivastava's disinformation campaign in Europe

The Srivastava Group, a rapidly growing Indian business house, claims a "leadership position" in "the key industries that drive economic growth" such as natural resources, clean energy, aerospace, consulting, health care, media and publishing.

Its mission focuses on publishing "content that educates" and "build healthier lives," but the organisation has faced accusations from Canada regarding activities deemed unhealthy to democracy.

In 2019 and 2020, EU DisinfoLab, a Brussels-based collective tackling disinformation uncovered a vast network of fake local news sites in over 65 countries serving Indian interests by repeatedly criticising Pakistan.

The websites, more than 265 in number, were designed to influence the European Union (EU) and the United Nations (UN) with the objective of damaging Pakistan, according to EU DisinfoLab.

"The operation's mission is to discredit nations in conflict with India in Asia, in particular Pakistan but also to a lesser extent China," EU DisinfoLab reported.

The scheme, involving the use of fake news sites and impersonated UN-accredited non-profit organisations, allegedly targeted South Asian population in Canada to "improve the perception of India," and secure the support of international institutions.

In 2022, Canadian immigration authorities informed Srivastava, the Chief Editor of the New Delhi Times, that his immigration application was against the country's interests, citing his prominent role in the Srivastava Group, which "has engaged in a number of disinformation campaigns" since 2005.

"Fake media outlets linked to the Srivastava Group in Europe include EP Today, EU Chronicle, the Times of Geneva, and 4 News Agency," they wrote.

Sixteen of the websites were "designed to look like local Canadian news websites," the report on Srivastava read, citing a 2019 CBC story. 

The websites promoted pro-India messaging and amplified fake or misleading articles about India's rivals, the Canadian immigration report said.

Such involvement of Indian nationals in illegal activities on foreign soil have previously been reflected in India's massive disinformation campaign against Pakistan through the use of different NGOs, fake protests, and websites which was first exposed by Geo News in 2017.

In a 12-minute report aired on September 19, 2017, it was revealed that the Indian government had paid for staged protests against Pakistan using hired students, carrying out a full-fledged operation against Pakistan.

The report stated that an anti-Pakistan blitz were run on billboards, buses, rickshaws, websites, and an army of paid volunteers had been assigned to run this campaign to malign the country at the time when the 36th session of the UN Human Rights Council was underway.

This was followed by the EU DisinfoLab report in 2019 that busted the Srivastava group's involvement in a 15-year-old operation targeting international institutions and serving Indian interests, serving as evidence of India's open interference in other countries with its illegal activities.