NEW DELHI (Reuters) -Canada on Friday said it was temporarily suspending in-person operations at consulates in several Indian cities and warned of visa processing delays amid a diplomatic dispute over the murder of a Sikh separatist leader in British Columbia.
The announcements affecting consulates in Bengaluru, Chandigarh and Mumbai came hours after Foreign Minister Melanie Joly said Canada has withdrawn 41 diplomats from India.
New Delhi last month asked Ottawa to reduce its diplomatic presence after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau cited what he said was credible evidence of a potential link between Indian agents and the murder of Hardeep Singh Nijjar.
India denies any connection to the shooting outside a Sikh temple in June.
“The Consulates General of Canada in Bengaluru, Chandigarh and Mumbai are temporarily suspending in-person operations,” said a statement from the Canadian High Commission, or embassy, in New Delhi, adding that services remain normal in the capital.
‘STRONG CONNECTION’
Canada’s Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) department said it was reducing employee numbers in India to five from 27, with visa processing times likely to be impacted even though the majority were handled abroad.
“Canada has a strong connection with Indian citizens, and will continue to welcome them, whether they wish to come here to visit, work, study, be reunited with loved ones, or live permanently in the country,” it added.
Around 2 million Canadians, some 5% of the overall population, have Indian heritage. India is also Canada’s largest source of foreign students, roughly 40%.
Indian foreign ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi did not respond immediately to a request for comment but had said last week that New Delhi was committed to ensuring diplomatic parity.
India has dismissed as absurd Trudeau’s suspicions that its agents were linked to the murder of Nijjar, 45, a Canadian citizen whom New Delhi had labelled a terrorist.
(Reporting by YP Rajesh;Editing by Andrew Cawthorne)
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