New Delhi: In yet another security scare for Indian diplomats in Canada, Consul General of India in Vancouver Manish was heckled by Sikh activists earlier this week, while designated terrorist and Sikhs for Justice (SFJ) founder Gurpatwant Singh Pannun has now made a fresh threat against him.
A video of the 12 November incident, being circulated on X (formerly Twitter), shows the Indian diplomat’s car being surrounded by a group of Sikhs holding Khalistan flags, in Abbotsford, despite the presence of policemen who are seen standing between the protesters and the car without taking any active countermeasures.
The protesters are heard yelling: “Who killed Nijjar? Indian government.”
Pannun, designated a terrorist by India in 2020, can then be heard threatening Manish with “sweet poetic justice” in the minute-long video. “Remember, you have challenged the sovereignty of Canada by assassinating Nijjar. Sweet poetic justice will follow you wherever you go,” he says.
A law graduate from Amritsar who fled to the US in 2007, Pannun through his videos has repeatedly called for a separate state of Khalistan.
Less than a fortnight ago, Pannun made a public threat to Air India, warning Sikhs against flying the carrier from 19 November onwards. The date marked the birth anniversary of Indira Gandhi, who was assassinated by her two Sikh bodyguards in 1984.
Pannun’s warning was not the first time Sikh separatists threatened Indian diplomats in Canada. Earlier this year, photos of India’s High Commissioner to Ottawa Sanjay Kumar Verma and Consul General in Toronto Apoorva Srivastava were circulated in a poster in which they were accused of having a role in the killing Nijjar.
According to Article 29 of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations (VCDR), host countries are responsible for the ‘respectful treatment’ of diplomats and must “take all appropriate steps to prevent any attack on an official’s person, freedom, or dignity”. The article also provides inviolability as to any form of arrest or detention in the host country.
Tensions between India and Canada plunged to an all-time low after Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in a speech in the House of Commons on 18 September blamed “agents” of the Government of India for the killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar. The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) rejected the allegations, calling them “absurd and motivated”.
On Sunday, Trudeau accused India of “arbitrarily” kicking out 41 diplomats and violating international law. The statement came shortly after New Delhi revealed that it had communicated its concerns, over the growing Sikh separatist sentiment in Canada, to Washington during the India-US 2+2 ministerial dialogue held Friday.
Last month, Canada withdrew 41 diplomats and 42 dependents from India, alleging that New Delhi’s request for diplomatic parity was a “violation of international law and the Vienna Convention”. The MEA had given Ottawa time until 10 October to ensure parity in diplomatic strength and rank, which was later extended till 20 November.
The US and the UK have backed Canada’s claims, with Washington noting that it was “concerned by the departure of Canadian diplomats” from India.
New Delhi, meanwhile, rejected these allegations while stating that its request for parity was “fully consistent with Article 11.1 of the Vienna Convention”.
(Edited by Amrtansh Arora)
Also Read: ‘Gang war’ involving Nijjar-style killings spreads in Canada — 3 including child shot dead in a week