'Allegations are politically driven': MEA on India-Canada row

Coming down heavily on the Justin Trudeau-led government in Canada, Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said that the row between New Delhi and Ottawa is "politically driven."During a press briefing, he said, "I think there is a degree of prejudice here. They have made allegations and taken action against them. To us, it seems that these allegations by the government of Canada are primarily politically driven."Calling Canada a "safe haven" for terrorists, Bagchi said, "Safe haven is being provided in Canada, we want the Canadian govt not to do so and take action against those who have terrorism charges or send them here to face justice…We’ve sought either extradition request or assistance related to that, at least more than 20-25 individuals we’ve requested over the years but the response has not been helpful at all."Relations between India and Canada have hit rock bottom after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau alleged that India has links with the killing of Khalistan terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar.Meanwhile, India has indefinitely suspended visa services for Canadian nationals as tensions between the two countries escalated following Justin Trudeau’s allegation of India’s link to Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar’s killing.“Operational reasons” have been cited for the suspension of visa services for Canadians “till further notice”.BLS International, a visa application centres in Canada, posted a message on its website: “Important notice from Indian Mission: Due to operational reasons, with effect from 21 September 2023, Indian visa services have been suspended till further notice. Please keep checking the BLS website for further updates,” read a notification on the official website of ‘India Visa Application Center Canada’.