Amid row, India asks Canada to withdraw 40 of its diplomats

They said that the principle of reciprocity is being invoked here, and Delhi wants the diplomatic strength to be equal in both countries.

Three days after Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s allegations of a potential Indian government link to the killing of Khalistan separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar, India had rejected the allegations as “absurd” and “motivated”, and on the issue of diplomatic presence, Ministry of External Affairs’ official spokesperson Arindam Bagchi had said on September 21 that the matter has been taken up with the Canadian government.

“We have informed the Canadian government that there should be parity in strength and rank equivalence in mutual diplomatic presence. Their numbers here are much very much higher than ours in Canada. The details of this are being worked out. But I assume there will be a reduction,” Bagchi had said.

Responding to a question, he had said that Canadian diplomats are “interfering in India’s internal affairs”.

On Tuesday, the Financial Times reported that India has told Canada that it must repatriate 41 diplomats by October 10, and has threatened to revoke the diplomatic immunity of those diplomats told to leave who remained after the deadline. Canada has 62 diplomats in India and India had said that the total should be reduced by 41, the British newspaper said.

While there was no official word from the Indian government or the Canadian authorities, sources from both sides confirmed the development to The Indian Express.

In Ottawa, Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Joly told reporters that the government believes in having a “strong diplomatic footprint” in India.

“We are in contact with the government of India. We take Canadian diplomats’ safety very seriously, and we will continue to engage privately because we think that diplomatic conversations are best when they remain private,” she said.

“In moments of tensions – because indeed there are tensions between both our governments more than ever – it’s important that diplomats be on the ground, and that’s why we believe in the importance of having a strong diplomatic footprint in India,” she was quoted as saying by Global News.

Sources said that the unequal presence in diplomatic strength is due to the larger diplomatic presence of Canada in India.

Apart from the Canadian High Commission in New Delhi, Canada has consulates in Chandigarh, Bengaluru and Mumbai. It also has Trade Commissioner Service offices – a total of eight – in New Delhi, Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Chandigarh, Chennai, Kolkata, Hyderabad and Mumbai.

India has a High Commission in Ottawa and consulates in Toronto and Vancouver. Of the 20-odd Indian diplomats stationed in Canada, about 12 are in Ottawa, while the remaining are in the two consulates in Toronto and Vancouver.

So, while India has three offices in Canada, Canada has 12 offices in India.

Sources said the large Canadian diplomatic presence is to facilitate the large number of Indians who travel to Canada to pursue higher education, business and tourism.

About 3 lakh Indian students are studying in Canada, and about 4 lakh Indians go there to work in companies or visit their family members on tourist visas.

Sources said the reduction in the diplomatic strength would mean that the visa sections at the Canadian High Commission in New Delhi and the consulates in Chandigarh, Bengaluru and Mumbai will have to reduce their staff strength. Reduction of staff will happen across all sections and consulates in India, sources said.

They said that this would definitely impact the visa processing time for Indian visa applicants — which will include Indian students wanting to study in Canadian universities, Indian professionals who live and work in Canada on business or work visas, Indians who opt for permanent residence in Canada, and those who visit their family or go there for tourism.

Since there are about 15 to 20 lakh people of Indian origin in Canada, the people-to-people connect is extremely strong and robust. Sources said that their travel will be impacted if the visa processing time becomes longer due to reduced staff strength.

India has already stopped visa services for Canadian nationals who want to visit India. This temporary suspension of issuance of visas to Canadian citizens includes e-visa services and Canadian citizens applying for visas from third countries as well. However, those who have valid visas and documents such as OCI (Overseas Citizenship of India) cards are free to travel to India.

– With PTI inputs from Ottawa