Jaishankar to MEA Panel: Canada Inactive on Extradition Requests; Suspension of Visas Temporary

The suspension of visas for Canadians is a temporary move by India keeping in mind the security of its diplomats, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar told the Parliamentary Consultative Committee for External Affairs on Saturday morning.

Sources said some MPs sought to know the current status of India-Canada ties which plummeted to new depths after Canadian PM Justin Trudeau accused India of involvement in the murder of Khalistani separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in British Columbia this June.

India had rejected the allegations as “absurd” and “motivated” and expelled a senior Canadian diplomat in a tit-for-tat move to Ottawa’s expulsion of an Indian official over the case last month. New Delhi also suspended visa services for Canadians.

“The Indian government had made several request for extradition of such extremist forces that managed to enter Canada. But the government there has been largely unresponsive to the demand by India,” a source quoted Jaishankar as telling the Committee. “Under the garb of freedom of speech, nobody can be seen supporting terrorism and extremism. This has been India’s stated position,” the minister is said to have further explained.

Sources added that Jaishankar referred to the suspension of visas as “temporary”.

“The situation in Canada towards Indian diplomats has been very hostile and their free movement hasn’t been possible of recent. There have been attempts to incite violence against them. It is India’s duty to protect its people, including its diplomats. Keeping the situation in mind, till the condition improves, the visas will remain suspended. Therefore, this is just a temporary suspension.”

The committee met on Saturday morning to discuss India’s G20 presidency and the successful conduct of the summit, where Prime Minister Narendra Modi had taken up the issue of Khalistani separatism thriving on Canadian soil in informal meetings with Trudeau.

Sources said a detailed presentation on the G20 Summit was made by the Foreign Secretary at the meeting, while Jaishankar explained the detailed efforts put in by the Narendra Modi government to make it a success.

“Glad to note the unanimous appreciation on its (G20’s) unqualified success. And the positive impact of the Jan Bhagidari approach,” Jaishankar posted on X (formerly Twitter).

Sources said all members of the committee, including those from the Opposition, praised the government on India’s successful conduct of the G20 Summit in Delhi and the consensus achieved on the declaration despite global differences over the Russia-Ukraine war.

Jaishankar is said to have told the MPs of the appreciation received by India over the inclusion of the African Union into the bloc. “It was the relentless efforts of PM Modi that made this happen. Talks have happened about Global South in the past, but nothing concrete was done,” sources quoted Jaishankar as saying.

Those present at the meeting included Priyanka Chaturvedi from Shiv Sena-UBT, Premchandra Gupta from the RJD, Sujit Kumar from the BJD, GVL Narsimha Rao and Bhola Singh from the BJP, Vikramjit Singh Sahney from AAP, Dr Venkata Satyavathi Beesetti of the YSRCP.

Interestingly, Congress MPs Rahul Gandhi and Shashi Tharoor were not present at the meeting.