TNI Bureau: Canada was “forced” to withdraw as many as 41 Diplomats from India due to a fallout from a bitter row over the killing of a Khalistani terrorist on Canadian soil, said Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly on Thursday.
According to Joly, India planned to “unethically” revoke diplomatic immunity for all but 21 of Canada’s diplomats and their families by Friday, forcing Ottawa to pull out the others.
“Revoking the diplomatic immunity of 41 diplomats is not only unprecedented, but also contrary to international law,” Joly said, but said Canada did not plan to retaliate in kind, so as to not “aggravate the situation.”
She clarified further that Canada will continue to defend international law, which applies to all nations and will continue to engage with India.
Notably, the relationship between India and Canada turned sour after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau alleged role of the Indian intelligence behind the killing of Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar.
However, India strongly denied Trudeau’s allegations and took countermeasures, such as shutting down visa services for Canadians.
