New Delhi, Dec 14 (PTI) India on Thursday said it implemented “parity” in Canada’s diplomatic presence in the country under the provisions of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations in view of the state of bilateral ties and “interference” by Canadian officials in the country’s internal affairs.
Minister of State for External Affairs V Muraleedharan, replying to a question in Rajya Sabha, also said that the government has been regularly engaged with the Canadian authorities on streamlining issuance of visas for Indian students to enable their timely admission to colleges and universities in that country.
The ties between India and Canada came under severe strain following Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s allegations in September linking Indian agents to the killing of Khalistani separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in June.
India strongly rejected the charges.
Following the diplomatic row, India asked Canada to withdraw 41 of its diplomats from the country to ensure mutual parity in diplomatic presence.
In October, Canada complied with New Delhi’s demand.
“Under Article 11.1 of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, India implemented parity in mutual diplomatic presence in New Delhi and Ottawa due to the state of our bilateral relations, the much higher number of Canadian diplomats in India, and their continued interference in our internal affairs,” Muraleedharan said.
The decision to implement parity was only with respect to the Canadian high commission in Delhi, he added.
“We have issued an advisory for all Indian nationals, including students and those visiting Canada, to exercise utmost caution and avoid travelling to regions and potential venues in Canada where there are security concerns,” Muraleedharan said.
“We have also urged Indian nationals in Canada, including students to register with our High Commission in Ottawa or Consulates General in Toronto and Vancouver through their respective websites, or the MADAD portal madad.gov.in,” he said.
Muraleedharan said it will enable the high commission and the consulates general to better connect with Indian citizens in Canada in the event of any emergency or untoward incident.
“The governments of India and Canada continue to be engaged through diplomatic channels on the above issues,” he said.
Through the MADAD portal, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) provides various services to the overseas Indians. PTI