The Indian government has ordered a major video-sharing platform to block access to a new Canadian documentary investigating the murder of a prominent Sikh activist in Vancouver, a move that highlights India's frustration with allegations that his government was involved in this horrific murder.

Read: Canada: home of second Sikh activist shot dead this month

This is the second time in just over a year that India has tried to block a documentary criticizing the Indian government or its leader, Narendra Modi. In 2023, India used emergency law to block the BBC India documentary: The Modi Question.

Last week, CBC's Fifth Estate, the investigative arm of the national broadcaster, aired Contract to Kill, a 43-minute documentary on the shooting death of Hardeep Singh Nijjar.

Nijjar, who had Canadian citizenship, was shot and killed in a parking lot on the outskirts of Vancouver. The killing, and the subsequent investigation by Canada's national security apparatus, prompted Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in September to tell the country's Parliament that there were “credible allegations” that “agents of the Indian government” were behind the murder. India rejects Canada's accusations and relations between the two countries remain tense.

This week, YouTube told CBC that it had received an order from India's Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, asking it to block access to the story's video from its website.

The video-sharing platform said that “the content has now been blocked” on YouTube's Indian site, but is still available outside the country.

In its request, the Indian government cited the Information Technology Act, 2000 which gives it the power to “intercept, monitor or decrypt any information generated, transmitted, received or stored on any computer resource”.

India also filed a request with social media site X, formerly Twitter, asking them to block access to the documentary.

“Indian law requires that X deny access to this content in India; however, the content remains available elsewhere,” X said in an email to CBC. “We disagree with this action and remain of the view that freedom of expression should extend to these positions. In accordance with Indian legal procedures, we are currently in communication with the Indian authorities.

The documentary includes security footage of Nijjar leaving the parking lot of the Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdwara temple one evening in June. As he approached the exit, a white vehicle blocked his truck and two men, dressed in hooded jackets, approached the truck and shot Nijjar.

“CBC News stands by its reporting on this story. “To ensure fairness and balance, the documentary includes a diverse range of voices, witnesses and subject matter experts,” Chuck Thompson, CBC's head of public affairs, said in a statement. “And, as with all Fifth Estate articles, Contract to Kill has been thoroughly investigated, reviewed by senior editorial staff and meets our journalistic standards.”

Canada's accusations that India was behind the killings have not led to any arrests, although police investigations remain ongoing. The allegations also resurfaced this week when New Zealand's Deputy Prime Minister, Winston Peters, appeared to cast doubt on Canada's claims.

According to the Indian Express newspaper, Peters made the comments to the media during his recent visit to India. “Where is the proof?” Where are the results now, here, now? Well, nothing,” Peters reportedly said.

“New Zealand's position on these allegations remains unchanged. If proven true, this would be a serious matter,” John Tulloch, senior press secretary in Peters' office, said in a statement. “What the minister means is that this is an ongoing criminal investigation. This needs to be played out before clear conclusions can be drawn.