India Bars Visa Services For Canadians As Tensions Rise

India on Thursday indefinitely suspended all visa services for Canadian nationals and asked Canada to downsize its diplomatic presence in the country, signalling further deterioration of ties following Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's allegation of Indian involvement in the killing of Khalistani leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar

- Anirudh Bhattacharyya , Rezaul H Laskar

BLS International, the firm which processes Indian visa applications in Canada, posted a message on its website about the suspension of services. This followed the external affairs ministry's advisory on Wednesday urging Indians in Canada to exercise utmost caution due to "politically condoned hate crimes".

The suspension of visa services is also expected to affect a significant section of the 1.6 million Canadians of Indian origin, many of whom have relatives in India. The temporary visa suspension will also apply to Canadian citizens applying for visas in third countries and to e-visa applications. It will not affect those who already possess valid visas or the Overseas Citizenship of India (OCI) cards.

VFS Global, the firm which processes Canadian visa applications in India did not immediately indicate any similar suspension, although analysts and diplomats say they expect Canada to suspend all visa services for Indian nationals at the earliest. The was no official response from the Canadian side as this paper went to print.

Before the external affairs ministry (EAM) announced the move to downsize Canada's diplomatic presence, the foreign ministry in Ottawa said it planned to temporarily pull some staff from the high commission and consulates in India due to threats to Canadian diplomats on social media.

The developments reflected the continuing downward spiral in bilateral relations since Trudeau spoke of a "potential link" between Indian government agents and the slaying of Nijjar, a designated terrorist, on Monday. Trudeau's accusation - dismissed by the Indian side as "absurd and motivated" - triggered a diplomatic row and resulted in tit-for-tat expulsions of senior diplomats.