New Delhi: Canada on Thursday (19 October) said 41 diplomats have left India after New Delhi demanded “parity” in diplomatic representation as it lashed out at Ottawa’s allegations that Indian agents were involved in the killing of a Canadian national.
As a result, Canada will end in-person visa services at all three consulates in Mumbai, Chandigarh and Bengaluru, while the overall visa processing time for Indian nationals will increase.
This is likely to be Canada’s largest withdrawal of diplomats from a single country at one time.
So far, there has been no response from the Indian government.
Last month, Canada expelled an Indian diplomat after accusing New Delhi of possible involvement in the killing of Hardeep Singh NIjjar, a Khalistan supporter. India angrily denied the allegations and also expelled a Canadian diplomat, suspended all visa services for Canadians and asked Ottawa to reduce the number of diplomats to match the Indian diplomatic presence.
Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly said India had formally notified its plan to strip most of its diplomats of diplomatic immunity by 20 October.
“This means that 41 Canadian diplomats and their 42 dependents were at risk of having their immunity revoked. Given the security implications of India’s actions for these Canadian diplomats and their families, Canada has facilitated their safe departure from India,” Joly told reporters in Ottawa.
She also said that the consular team has now been drastically reduced. “Five IRCC (Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada) staff will remain in India to focus on work that requires an in-country presence, such as expedited processing, visa printing, risk assessment and oversight of key partners, including visa application centres, panel doctors and clinics that conduct immigration medical examinations. The remainder of the work and staff will be redistributed across our global processing network”.
According to Canadian media reports, quoting unnamed officials, the number of Canadian staff doing consular work has been reduced from 27 to five. They process applications not only from India, but also from Nepal and Bhutan.
Canadian officials said that 45% of Canada’s international students, 27% of new permanent residents and 22% of temporary foreign workers are from India.
Explaining that Canada will be forced to suspend all in-person services at consulates, Joly added: “Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) will continue to accept and process applications from India. However, certain application requirements will need to be completed locally or on-site in a secure environment. As a result, the reduction in the size of the IRCC team will have an impact on service standards for Indian residents”.
Canadian media had earlier reported that India had set a deadline of 10 October to downsize its embassies, but that deadline passed without any change.
Meanwhile, India had reiterated that it would seek diplomatic parity with Canada “in view of the much higher diplomatic presence of Canadian diplomats or diplomatic presence here by Canada and their continued interference in our internal affairs”. However, India had not publicly announced a deadline for the return of Canadian diplomats.
During her announcement in Ottawa, Joly had described India’s threat to unilaterally withdraw diplomatic immunity as contrary to international law, including the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations.
“This action by India is completely inappropriate and escalatory. India accredited each and every one of the Canadian diplomats it is now expelling. And all of those diplomats were carrying out their duties in good faith and for the greater good of both countries,” she said.
Joly reiterated that diplomatic immunity cannot be unilaterally revoked by a host country, noting that if this norm were broken, “no diplomat anywhere would be safe”.
She also stated that Canada would not reciprocate India’s actions. “The Government of Canada will therefore continue to respect diplomatic norms and will not reciprocate this action. Canada will continue to defend international law, which applies equally to all states. Canada will continue to engage with India and remains committed to dialogue as we move forward.”
The Canadian Foreign Minister also reiterated that India’s decision “will not distract from Canada’s legitimate investigation into Mr Nijjar’s killing”.
“Canada’s priorities in this matter remain the pursuit of the truth, the protection of Canadians and the defence of our sovereignty,” she added.
