India to resume some visa services in Canada, amid dispute over killing of Sikh separatist leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar

The decision applies to people of Indian origin and those requiring permits to attend conferences or for business or medical reasons
The move is a sign of softening tensions between the two nations over the killing of Sikh separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar near Vancouver

India

Bloomberg

Published: 1:23am, 26 Oct 2023

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India will begin issuing certain categories of visas for Canadian citizens, in a sign of softening of tensions between the two nations over the killing of a Sikh separatist leader.

India will resume issuing visas from October 26 to people of Indian origin, and those requiring permits to attend conferences or for business or medical reasons, the Indian High Commission in Ottawa said on Wednesday.

The decision was taken after a “considered review of the security situation that takes into account some Canadian measures in this regard”, it said in a statement.

“Emergency situations will continue to be addressed by the High Commission and the Consulates General as it is being done currently,” the statement said. “Further decisions, as appropriate, would be intimated based on continuing evaluation of the situation.”

The Indian High Commission and consulates will also address any emergency situation, according to the statement.

India in September had stopped issuing visas to Canadians citing “security threats faced by our embassy and consulates in Canada.”

India-Canada ties going ‘south rapidly’ amid row over killing of Sikh separatist

The move to resume some visa services comes days after Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s administration forced the North American nation to cut its diplomatic staff in India, which External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar said was triggered by concerns about interference by Canadian diplomats in his country’s internal affairs.

Diplomatic ties between the two countries deteriorated since Prime Minister Justin Trudeau accused India’s government of helping orchestrate the killing of Sikh separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a Canadian citizen, on Canadian soil.

Nijjar, who emigrated to Canada in 1997 and became a Canadian citizen in 2015, was shot dead by two masked assailants in the car park of a Sikh temple near Vancouver in June.

02:58

India’s Sikhs worry about the future as row with Canada escalates

An advocate for a separate Sikh state carved out of India, Nijjar was wanted by Indian authorities for alleged terrorism and conspiracy to commit murder. Canada has called for India to cooperate in the investigation into his death.

New Delhi called the allegation “absurd” and retaliated with several measures, including a suspension of visas for Canadians.

Sikh murder row: Canada pulls 41 diplomats out of India after immunity threat

India asked Ottawa to reduce its diplomatic presence and make it equal to the number of Indians who have diplomatic immunity in Canada.

Canada announced last week it had withdrawn 41 diplomats from India as a result of the row. New Delhi was about to revoke diplomatic immunity for all but 21 of Canada’s diplomats and their families, forcing Ottawa to pull out the others.

The Indian government had also advised its nationals not to travel to parts of Canada “given the increase in anti-Indian activities”.

Additional reporting by Agence France-Presse, dpa

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