Canberra: India’s External Affairs Minister S. India has taken up the issue of Khalistani forces operating in Canada with the government there, Jaishankar said today. He said India has emphasised the need to ensure that the freedoms enjoyed in a democratic society are not allowed to be misused by forces that actually support “violence” and “radicalisation”.
Anti-India activities have increased in Canada over the past few weeks. Jaishankar made the remarks during a joint media conference here with his Australian counterpart Penny Wong. “From time to time, we have spoken to the Government of Canada.
“I myself have spoken to my Canadian counterpart on this issue (Khalistan). There is a need to better understand how democracy works, external democracies also have a responsibility towards other democratic countries,” he said.
There is a need to take care of the democratic values of other countries, not only in our own home but also in other countries.
On September 15, the BAPS Swaminarayan Temple in Toronto was damaged by “Canadian Khalistani extremists” with anti-India words written on it. On September 23, India had also strongly objected to the ‘Khalistan referendum’ being held in Canada.
India had said it was objectionable that such “politically motivated” activities were taking place in a friendly country.
On the issue of warnings issued by India about travel to Canada, Jaishankar said, “We are very clear about it. When we issue travel instructions, they are linked to the safety of our citizens. There is nothing more in them than that.”
It is worth mentioning that after the warnings issued by India, Canada had also issued warnings for travel to India on the same lines. India had said that the authorities in Canada have not taken appropriate action against the incidents of hate crimes in the country.