India resumes visa services in Canada for select categories amid diplomatic row

The visa services have been resumed for the following categories – Entry visa, Business visa, Medical visa and Conference visa, a statement by the High Commission of India in Ottawa stated.

Earlier on Sunday, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said that India invoked diplomatic parity due to concerns over “continuous interference” in its “internal affairs” by Canadian personnel.

While he said the India-Canada relationship is going through “a difficult phase”, Jaishankar added that India is looking at resuming visa services for Canadians “very soon” if it sees progress in the safety of its diplomats in Canada.

His comments signal the Indian government’s move to draw the red line on the issue of diplomatic parity, a day after the US and UK backed Canada.

Meanwhile, the Canadian government has announced the withdrawal of 41 diplomats from India and halted its visa and consular services in Chandigarh, Mumbai, and Bengaluru consulates. The services are now available only at the Canadian High Commission in Delhi.

Tensions flared between the two countries last month following Trudeau’s allegations of the “potential” involvement of Indian agents in the killing of Khalistani extremist Hardeep Singh Nijjar on June 18 in British Columbia. India had designated Nijjar as a terrorist in 2020. India rejected the allegations as “absurd” and “motivated”.

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