'No faith in Canadian govt': India to withdraw High Commissioner from Canada as diplomatic row escalates
Government of India on Monday decided to withdraw the High Commissioner and other targeted diplomats and officials from Canada.
PTC News Desk: The Government of India on Monday decided to withdraw the High Commissioner and other targeted diplomats and officials from Canada.
"It... was underlined that in an atmosphere of extremism and violence, the Trudeau Government's actions endangered their safety. We have no faith in the current Canadian Government's commitment to ensure their security. Therefore, the Government of India has decided to withdraw the High Commissioner and other targeted diplomats and officials," MEA said in a statement.
The relationship between the two countries deteriorated further after Canada announced that it was investigating the Indian High Commissioner as a "person of interest" in the murder of Sikh leader Hardeep Nijjar.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs received "diplomatic communication from Canada yesterday suggesting that the Indian High Commissioner and other diplomats are 'persons of interest' in a matter related to an investigation in that country" .
It labelled Canada's accusations against High Commissioner Sanjay Kumar Verma "ludicrous".
"High Commissioner Sanjay Kumar Verma is India's senior-most serving diplomat with a distinguished career spanning 36 years. He has been an Ambassador in Japan and Sudan, while also serving in Italy, Turkiye, Vietnam and China. The aspersions cast on him by the Government of Canada are ludicrous and deserve to be treated with contempt," MEA said.