India suspends new visas for Canadians, escalating spat following Sikh separatist’s murder

India has suspended new visas for Canadians and asked Ottawa to reduce its diplomatic presence in the country, escalating a spat triggered by an accusation India was tied to a Sikh separatist’s murder.

India was willing to look into specific information in connection with the accusations, its foreign ministry said on Thursday, adding that Canada has not shared anything so far.

It was a statement Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau later rebutted in a news conference.

“Canada has shared the credible allegations that I talked about on Monday with India. We did that many weeks ago,” he said.

“We are there to work constructively with India.

“We hope that they engage with us so that we can get to the bottom of this very serious matter.”

A blanket suspension of new visas by India for a Western nation is unheard of and marks the lowest point of India-Canada relations.

The announcement came hours after Canada’s high commission in India said it would temporarily “adjust” staff presence in the country after some diplomats received threats on social media platforms.

The commission did not specify the nature of the threats, and India has said it would provide “all security and all support” to foreign diplomats.

Indian foreign ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said India suspended visas to Canadian citizens due to “security threats” to consulates in Canada.

“Accordingly our high commission and consulates are temporarily unable to process visa applications,” he told reporters, adding the security situation would be reviewed regularly.

India did not provide further detail, and Canada’s public safety minister Dominic LeBlanc has responded saying Canada was a safe country.

‘Safe haven for terrorists’: India wields scathing claim at Canada

The unprecedented tensions flared up on Monday after Mr Trudeau said Ottawa was investigating “credible allegations” about the potential involvement of Indian government agents in the June murder of Hardeep Singh Nijjar in British Columbia.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government has denied any links to the alleged murder.

Canadian officials have declined to say why they believe India could be linked to Mr Nijjar’s murder.

Canada also expelled an Indian diplomat, and India followed by expelling a Canadian diplomat on Tuesday.

Mr Bagchi also said Canada should be worried about damage to its reputation, when asked about the risk posed by the row to India’s global standing.

India has not provided any details of acts of terrorism carried out by Sikh separatists against its interests in Canada.

Australian officials find accusations ‘concerning’

Canada has discussed the issue with key allies, including Five Eyes intelligence-sharing partner Australia.

Foreign Minister Penny Wong has called the accusations “concerning”.

“Obviously, these are concerning reports, and as I’ve said, we are monitoring these developments closely with our partners,” she said Wednesday.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken also said on Friday the United States wanted to see “accountability” over the killing.

Canada has the largest population of Sikhs outside the northern Indian state of Punjab, with about 770,000 people reporting Sikhism as their religion in the 2021 census.

A bloody Sikh insurgency in the 1980s and 1990s in Punjab killed tens of thousands of people before it was suppressed.

The separatists wanted the creation of an independent Sikh state called Khalistan.

The spat is also threatening trade ties, with talks on a proposed trade deal frozen last week.

Canada is India’s 17th largest foreign investor, while Canadian portfolio investors have put billions of dollars in Indian financial markets.

Reuters