The flags of India and Canada.
Credit: iStock Photo
With Ottawa’s allegations against New Delhi over the killing of a Khalistani Sikh extremist taking the bilateral relations to a new low, India on Tuesday asked its citizens living in Canada to exercise "utmost caution" in view of "growing politically condoned hate crimes" in the North American country.
The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) issued a travel advisory in New Delhi warning the country’s citizens about "growing anti-India activities" in Canada. India issued the advisory not only for its citizens currently in Canada but also for the ones who were contemplating visiting the country in the near future. It particularly advised the Indian students "to exercise extreme caution and remain vigilant" given “the deteriorating security environment in Canada”.
New Delhi’s move came after Ottawa updated its travel advisory for Canada’s citizens already in India as well as for the ones planning to travel to the South Asian country.
Canada advised its citizens to exercise a high degree of caution in India due to the "threat of terrorist attacks throughout the country".
Ottawa’s updated travel advisory warned the citizens of Canada to avoid travelling to India’s Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir due to the unpredictable security situation. "Avoid non-essential travel to the following states due to the risk of terrorism and insurgency in Assam and Manipu," it stated, adding: "There is a threat of terrorism, militancy, civil unrest and kidnapping".
Canada also advised its citizens to avoid travelling to areas within 10 kilometres of India’s border with Pakistan in Gujarat, Punjab and Rajasthan. The advisory, however, excluded travelling to or within Ladakh as well as to the Attari-Wagah border crossing on the India-Pakistan border.
Ottawa and New Delhi issued the tit-for-tat travel advisories a day after both sides expelled each other’s diplomats even as the stress in the bilateral relations reached a flashpoint with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau accusing India of having a role in the killing of a Khalistani Sikh extremist in the British Columbia province of the North American country. New Delhi already dismissed Ottawa’s allegations as "absurd, motivated and unsubstantiated".
New Delhi has been accusing the Trudeau government in Ottawa of showing reluctance in curbing the anti-India activities of the Khalistani Sikh extremists in Canada, apparently for vote-bank considerations. The radical elements with suspected links to Sikhs for Justice (SFJ) and other extremist organisations have not only been campaigning against New Delhi’s diplomats and consular officials in Canada but have also been vandalising icons culturally linked to India – like the statues of Mahatma Gandhi and temples of the Hindus.
"In view of growing anti-India activities and politically condoned hate crimes and criminal violence in Canada, all Indian nationals there and those contemplating travel are urged to exercise utmost caution," the MEA said in the advisory, subtly hitting out at the Trudeau fovernment for "failing to curb hate crimes".
"Recently, threats have particularly targeted Indian diplomats and sections of the Indian community who oppose the anti-India agenda. Indian nationals are, therefore, advised to avoid travelling to regions and potential venues in Canada that have seen such incidents," it said.
It said the Indian nationals and students from India in Canada must also register with the High Commission of India in Ottawa or Consulates General of India in Toronto and Vancouver through their respective websites.