India has suspended visa services for Canadian nationals 'till further notice' amid diplomatic tussle between the two G20 countries. Authorities in New Delhi cited 'operational reasons' for the suspension.
This comes a day after the Ministry of External Affairs on Wednesday issued an advisory to all Indian nationals in Canada, urging them "to exercise utmost caution."
Canada Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Monday said that there are "credible allegations of a potential link" of Indian government and the Sikh separatist leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar's death. Following this, Canadian Foreign Minister Mélanie Joly said the head of Indian intelligence in Canada has been expelled as a consequence.
"If proven true this would be a great violation of our sovereignty and of the most basic rule of how countries deal with each other," Joly said. "As a consequence, we have expelled a top Indian diplomat."
India has strongly rejected Trudeau's claims as absurd and motivated and dismissed a senior Canadian diplomat in a reciprocal move.
Canada had also approached its allies, including the US, seeking their public condemnation of , but was rebuffed, said reports.
The issue was privately raised by several senior officials of the Five Eyes intelligence-sharing countries in the weeks before September’s G20 summit in New Delhi. However, Ottawa's overtures were rebuffed.
A report by The Washington Post quoting an unnamed Western official said the countries decided not to mention it publicly ahead of the G20 Summit "which Western leaders viewed as an important coming-out party for Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi."
However, a spokeswoman for Canada’s foreign minister said the claims that "Canada asked allies to publicly condemn the murder of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, and were subsequently rebuffed, are false."
