Ahead of Alberta secession vote, Carney urges Indian-origin Canadians to back a united Canada

Canada is going through a constitutional and political crisis unlike any seen before. Alberta, the country's richest province, which is full of oil and natural gas reserves, stands on the threshold of breaking away to form an independent country. To stop the separatist movement and avert a split of the country, Prime Minister Mark Carney has reached out directly to people of Indian origin.

To send a message of Canadian unity and win over the Indian community, Carney is repeatedly invoking India, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and possible trade agreements between the two countries.

A historic vote is being held in Alberta on 19 October 2026. It is not about creating a new country overnight. The question is whether the provincial government should begin the official legal process of leaving the Canadian federation. If the vote gives a majority in favour of separation, it would be the biggest constitutional shock in Canada's history.

For this reason, Carney spoke directly on RED FM Calgary, a radio station popular with Punjabi speakers and the Indian community. He appealed to people of Indian origin to stand firmly for a united Canada.

Two main reasons are cited for the demand for a separate country in Alberta: long-accumulated resentment and strong economic power. According to official figures from the Oil Dashboard, Alberta holds about 165 billion barrels of oil. The province's separatist leaders argue that Ottawa collects billions of dollars in taxes from Alberta's resources and oil earnings, but does not give the province its due weight in policy decisions and national politics.

Local residents allege that the federal government's strict environmental policies and restrictions on pipeline projects have badly hurt Alberta's energy sector. A section of people there feel that, to escape this economic exploitation and neglect by the Centre, they need a separate identity and autonomy. Earlier this year, about 300,000 people signed a petition demanding a referendum on separation. An Ipsos survey found that about 28 per cent of local residents supported leaving Canada.

People of Indian origin play a decisive role in Alberta's politics. According to the 2021 Canadian census, about 298,000 people of South Asian origin live in Alberta, most of them Indian, especially from the Punjabi community. In the past five years alone, more than 31,800 new Indian citizens have settled in the province, 16 per cent of all new immigrants. Indian voters have a strong presence in large cities such as Calgary and Edmonton.

Carney knows well that if voters of Indian origin vote for Canada's integrity, the separatists' dream could easily fall apart. In the radio conversation, host Rishi Nagar also said that most people of Indian origin in Alberta prefer to live in a stable, secure and united Canada. He added that some proposals in the vote could directly affect the health and education rights of new immigrants, Indian students and temporary workers. The Indian community therefore considers staying with Canada safer for its future.

To persuade Albertans and the Indian community, Carney has played the card of economic and political ties with India. He said talks on the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) between India and Canada are moving quickly. He also said Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is coming on a two-day visit to Canada in December 2026, and described it as a sign of a new phase in the friendship between the two countries.

Carney's main argument is that Alberta is a huge producer of oil and natural gas. If Alberta remains part of Canada, it will be very easy to send oil through the Trans Mountain pipeline to the port of Vancouver and sell it to India, Asia's biggest market. A fast-growing power like India has a great need for energy. But if Alberta leaves Canada, it will become a landlocked country, and selling oil internationally or striking trade agreements will then be extremely difficult for the province.

Carney has thus invoked India and Prime Minister Narendra Modi to persuade Albertans and the Indian community that separation brings only loss, while the future of all lies in staying in a united Canada and trading with a power like India.