Amid an escalating dispute over the assassination of a Sikh separatist within Canadian borders, India has temporarily suspended visa services for Canadian citizens. Visa service provider BLS conveyed a message from India’s mission, attributing the decision to “operational reasons.”
Tensions between the two nations flared this week when Canada announced an investigation into “credible allegations” connecting India to the separatist leader’s murder. India vehemently rejected these allegations, deeming them “absurd.”
Experts contend that the already strained relations between the two countries have reached an unprecedented nadir.
The notice regarding the visa suspension was initially published on the BLS website on Thursday, stating, “Important notice from Indian Mission: Due to operational reasons, Indian visa services have been suspended until further notice, effective from 21st September 2023.”
The Indian Ministry of Foreign Affairs declined to comment on the matter and directed inquiries to the BLS website.
This development follows India’s advisory issued the day before, urging its citizens in or traveling to Canada to exercise extreme caution due to the “growing anti-India activities” and politically sanctioned hate crimes and criminal violence in Canada.
Canada is home to 1.4 million individuals of Indian descent, comprising 3.7% of the country’s population according to the 2021 census. Additionally, India sends the highest number of international students to Canada, constituting 40% of the total overseas student population in 2022, with 320,000 students.
On Wednesday, India called upon its citizens in Canada to exercise vigilance, citing recent threats directed at Indian diplomats and those opposing anti-India agendas.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced on Monday that intelligence agencies were investigating whether “agents of the government of India” were involved in the murder of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a Canadian citizen who had been designated a terrorist by India in 2020. Nijjar was fatally shot in his vehicle by two masked assailants outside a Sikh temple in British Columbia on June 18.
Trudeau emphasized that any foreign government’s involvement in the killing of a Canadian citizen on Canadian soil constitutes an unacceptable violation of sovereignty.
India responded firmly, accusing Canada of attempting to divert attention from Khalistani terrorists and extremists sheltered in Canada. The Indian government has consistently reacted strongly to demands by Sikh separatists in Western countries for Khalistan, a separate Sikh homeland.
The Khalistan movement, which peaked in India during the 1980s with a violent insurgency centered in Punjab state, has largely dissipated within India but still finds support among certain segments of the Sikh diaspora in countries like Canada, Australia, and the UK.
Canada boasts the largest Sikh population outside India, with approximately 780,000 Sikh residents, comprising over 2% of the nation’s population. The country has witnessed multiple pro-Khalistan protests and demonstrations.
In June, reports emerged that India had lodged a formal complaint with Canada concerning the safety of its diplomats stationed there.
