India, April 29 -- Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has vowed that his government will always "protect" the "rights and freedoms" of the Sikh community in the country.

Trudeau made these remarks while addressing the gathering at the Khalsa Day Parade in downtown Toronto on Sunday afternoon. "To the nearly 800,000 Canadian of Sikh heritage, we will always be there to protect your rights and freedoms and we will always defend your community against hatred and discrimination," he said.

Trudeau was accompanied by four Cabinet ministers and four Liberal Party MPs on the stage. As he arrived on the podium, he was greeted with shouts of "Khalistan Zindabad" from some elements in the gathering, and those chants were repeated as he complet...