New Delhi: Khalistan backer Jagmeet Singh has resigned from the post of leader of the New Democratic Party (NDP) after his party suffered a crushing defeat in the Canadian parliamentary elections on Monday. Singh couldn’t even retain his seat, losing from Burnaby Central–formerly Burnaby South. He finished third.
Singh broke down in tears as he conceded both his parliamentary seat and the leadership of his party. This was a spectacular fall from grace for the Indo-Canadian politician who once seemed poised to reshape the country’s left. He was addressing party workers at NDP’s campaign headquarters in Burnaby. Singh was flanked by his wife Gurkiran.
Jagmeet Singh announces that he will be stepping down as NDP leader. pic.twitter.com/c3PvzDQcyu
— Jarryd Jäger (@JarrydJaeger) April 29, 2025
“Thank you, and all of you in this room, you guys poured your heart into this,” Singh said, struggling to hold back tears. “I know this night is a disappointing night for New Democrats. We had really good candidates that lost tonight. I’m so sorry you’re not going to be able to represent your communities. I know you’re going to continue to fight for them.”
A disastrous night for the NDP
The 46-year-old politician announced he would step down as NDP leader as soon as an interim replacement is appointed. His resignation follows a disastrous night for the NDP, projected to win just seven seats — well short of the 12 required to maintain official party status in the House of Commons.
The electoral collapse was a personal and political blow for Singh, who had taken the reins of the NDP in 2017, winning the leadership on the first ballot. He later won his parliamentary seat in a 2019 by-election and held it through the 2019 and 2021 general elections.
Singh’s leadership had been under growing scrutiny in recent years, particularly over his controversial support for events and figures linked to the Khalistan separatist movement. In 2018, he publicly acknowledged for the first time the role of Talwinder Singh Parmar — founder of the banned Babbar Khalsa International — in the 1985 Air India bombing, following criticism and media scrutiny. His earlier hesitation to denounce the glorification of Parmar in Canadian gurdwaras had provoked backlash both domestically and in India.
Stunning win for Liberal Party
The NDP’s decline was further fuelled by its 2022 confidence-and-supply agreement with Justin Trudeau’s minority Liberal government, a move that many voters saw as propping up an increasingly unpopular administration.
“In the fight for justice, the fight for fairness, we want to have defiant optimism in the face of struggle,” he said.
Meanwhile, celebrations were underway across Canada for the Liberal Party, led by newly elected Prime Minister Mark Carney, which pulled off a stunning win. Populist Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre also suffered a shock defeat, losing his seat as the party fell short of expectations amidst tensions with the United States and a volatile campaign season.
