Interference by Canadian diplomats in India's internal affairs warrant parity in diplomatic presence in Delhi, Ottawa: MEA

NEW DELHI: The Centre on Friday strongly rejected attempts by Canada to "portray the implementation of parity in diplomatic presence as a violation of international norms" and said that India's actions in implementing this parity are fully consistent with Article 11.1 of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations. India also once again justified its move to reduce the number of Canadian diplomats and said "The state of our bilateral relations, the much higher number of Canadian diplomats in India, and their continued interference in our internal affairs warrant a parity in mutual diplomatic presence in New Delhi and Ottawa."
India had asked Canada to downsize its diplomatic presence in the country as relations between the two nations plunged to an all-time low following Ottawa's allegations against New Delhi over the killing of a Khalistani terrorist on Canadian soil.Canada today withdrew 41 diplomats and their family members after India made it clear that it will remove diplomatic immunities for all but 21 Canadian diplomats and dependents in Delhi by October 20.
The ministry of external affairs issued a statement to reject Canada's charges of violation of diplomatic norms and also denied any arbitrariness in the process.
"We have seen the statement by the Government of Canada on October 19 regarding Canadian diplomatic presence in India. We have been engaged with the Canadian side on this over the last month in order to work out the details and modalities of its implementation," the MEA statement read.
"Our actions in implementing this parity are fully consistent with Article 11.1 of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, which states the following: 'In the absence of specific agreement as to the size of the mission, the receiving State may require that the size of a mission be kept within limits considered by it to be reasonable and normal, having regard to circumstances and conditions in the receiving State and to the needs of the particular mission. We reject any attempt to portray the implementation of parity as a violation of international norms," the statement said.
Canadian foreign affairs minister Melanie Joly called India's request for diplomatic parity "unreasonable" and said, "I can confirm that India has formally conveyed its plan to unilaterally remove diplomatic immunities for all but 21 Canadian diplomats and dependents in Delhi by tomorrow, October 20."
Meanwhile, Canada also announced that it will be pausing all in-person services at the consulates in Chandigarh, Mumbai and Bengaluru and will be directing all Canadians in India to the high commission in New Delhi.
The Canadian Embassy in New Delhi updated its travel advisory hours after Joly's statement, urging its citizens to "exercise a high degree of caution" in and around Bengaluru, Chandigarh and Mumbai.
In its travel advisory for India that was updated on Thursday, Canada said: “In the context of recent developments in Canada and in India, there are calls for protests and some negative sentiment towards Canada in traditional media and on social media ... Demonstrations, including anti-Canada protests, could occur and Canadians may be subjected to intimidation or harassment. In Delhi and the National Capital Region, you should keep a low profile with strangers, and not share your personal information with them."
"Avoid crowded areas, including public transportation. You should always travel with someone and inform a friend or a family member of your travel plans, “Consular services in person are temporarily unavailable in and around Bengaluru, Chandigarh and Mumbai. Consular services in person at the High Commission of Canada in New Delhi will remain available,” the advisory also states.
According to the travel industry, Canada and the UK were among the countries in India that had taken visa processing to pre-Covid levels and even beyond while the US still has very long interview wait period for visitor visa and many key Schengen countries have severe appointment capping here.
Relations between India and Canada have plunged since Prime Minister Justin Trudeau last month publicly linked Indian intelligence to the killing of Canadian citizen Hardeep Singh Nijjar, allegations New Delhi has called "absurd".
Nijjar, who was a designated terrorist in India, was gunned down outside a Gurdwara, in a parking area in Canada's Surrey, British Columbia on June 18.