India will partially resume visa services in Canada — closed last month amid a diplomatic row — from today, the Indian High Commission in Ottawa said on Wednesday. Services will resume for entry visa, business visa, medical visa, and conference visa, the High Commission said.
“Further decisions, as appropriate, would be intimated based on continuing evaluation of the situation,” read the media statement from the High Commission.The visa services were suspended towards September-end as ties between the two nations faced severe strain following Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s allegations of “potential” involvement of Indian agents in the killing of a Canadian citizen, Hardeep Singh Nijjar, who was the chief of the banned Khalistan Tiger Force and one of India’s most-wanted terrorists.
On Sunday, foreign minister S Jaishankar said visa services to Canada could resume if India sees progress in the safety of Indian diplomats in Canada. It had attributed the suspension to “safety and security considerations” — a point the media statement underscored. If we see progress in safety of our diplomats in Canada, we would like to resume issuance of visas there, Jaishankar said on Sunday.