Papas, don’t preach: Double standards are standard operating procedure in realpolitik

When America-led West says governments must not order hit jobs on citizens of other countries – as it has been saying since Canada alleged GOI involvement in the killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar – or when it says no one must buy Russian oil – as it has preached since Russia invaded Ukraine and India became Russia’s big petro buyer – what’s at play is deadpan duplicity. The point is not whether GOI ordered the hit job; GOI has denied it strongly and Canada hasn’t offered any substantive proof yet. But foreign minister Jaishankar has a point when he talks of “double standards”. Double standards are standard operating procedure in global realpolitik. But it stands out when it’s SOP for the West since Western countries consider themselves as models of moral behaviour.

America’s many recent extrajudicial killings – let’s not even mention its Cold War excursions – are justified by the targets being terrorists or dangerous types – and mostly, they are. But here’s the thing. The world is supposed to accept America’s definition of a terrorist, but America and its allies contest many other democracies’ definition of what’s terrorism or dangerous behaviour. Nijjar is being called Sikh leader or dissident leader by many in the West. This is laughable, considering both what he had done and who his close associates were. If one were to apply the Western view on Nijjar to some of the characters killed by Israeli hit squads, Israel would be under permanent sanction. But Western realpolitik demands there be no censure of Israel.

It’s about power and interests. Canada denied India’s many extradition requests, merrily made a hash of the Air India bombing case and made light of Indian security interests – all because it thought it could. That was double standard served with maple syrup.

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