New Delhi:
Rubbishing a Canadian minister’s claims that Home Minister Amit Shah had ordered the targeting of Khalistani extremists in the country, India has termed them “absurd and baseless” and said a Canadian diplomat had been summoned on Thursday.
Canada’s Deputy Foreign Affairs Minister David Morrison had told members of the country’s Standing Committee on Public Safety and National Security on Tuesday that Mr Shah had ordered a campaign of violence, intimidation and intelligence gathering targeting Khalistani extremists.
Replying to a question on Friday, Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said a representative of the Canadian High Commission had been summoned on Thursday and a diplomatic note was handed over.
“It was conveyed in the note that the Government of India protests in the strongest terms to the absurd and baseless references made to the Union Home Minister of India before the Committee by Deputy Minister David Morrison,” Mr Jaiswal said.
Mr Morrison had said that he had confirmed Mr Shah’s name to The Washington Post, which had first reported the allegations, and the Ministry of External Affairs said this proves that high-ranking Canadian officials deliberately leak unfounded claims to the media. Mr Jaiswal warned that such actions will have “serious consequences” for ties between India and Canada.
“In fact, the revelation that high Canadian officials deliberately leak unfounded insinuations to the international media as part of a conscious strategy to discredit India and influence other nations only confirms the view Government of India has long held about the current Canadian Government’s political agenda and behavioural pattern. Such irresponsible actions will have serious consequences for bilateral ties,” he said.
Categorisation, Surveillance
Responding to reports that China has named India an “adversary” alongside China, North Korea Russia and Iran in its National Cyber Threat Assessment, Mr Jaiswal said this was another example of imputations being made without evidence.
“This appears to be another example of a Canadian strategy to attack India. As I mentioned earlier, their senior officials have openly confessed that they are seeking to manipulate global opinion against India. As on other occasions, imputations are made without any evidence,” he said.
The Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson also said some of India’s consular officials were informed by the Canadian government that they have been under surveillance and said this was a “flagrant violation” diplomatic conventions. He also made it clear that New Delhi sees the action as a form of harassment and intimidation.
“Some of our consular officials were recently informed by the Canadian Government that they have been and continued to be under audio and video surveillance. Their communications have also been intercepted. We have formally protested to the Canadian Government as we deem these actions to be a flagrant violation of relevant diplomatic and consular conventions,” Mr Jaiswal said.
“By citing technicalities, the Canadian Government cannot justify the fact that it is indulging in harassment and intimidation. Our diplomatic and consular personnel are already functioning in an environment of extremism and violence. This action of the Canadian Government aggravates the situation and is incompatible with established diplomatic norms and practices,” he asserted.
