LONDON: Ministry of External Affairs lodged strong protest, seeking explanation from UK for complete absence of security that allowed separatist elements to enter Indian mission
The foreign ministry summoned the senior-most diplomat of UK in New Delhi as the Indian flag was pulled down from the Indian High Commission in London amid protests by a section of Sikhs over the police crackdown on Khalistani separatist Amritpal Singh and his supporters.
India told the second most senior diplomat at the UK High Commission that the UK Government’s “indifference” to the security of Indian diplomatic premises and personnel in the country was “unacceptable”.
In a statement, the ministry said it has conveyed India's strong protest at the actions by "separatist and extremist elements against the Indian High Commission in London". It also demanded that UK government take immediate action. A section of expat Sikhs were protesting over the crackdown on Amritpal since evening.
Cellphone videos posted on social media showed the protesters taking down the Indian flag at the Indian High Commission in London. The foreign ministry said it has demanded an explanation "for the complete absence of the British security that allowed these elements to enter the High Commission premises".
The shared videos on social media showed that the “separatist and extremist elements” were heard raising ‘Khalistan Zindabad’ slogans on the High Commission premises. They also raised anti-India slogans while holding up a poster of Khalistani sympathiser and fugitive Amritpal Singh.
On March 10, PM Narendra Modi had said, “It is regrettable that over the last few weeks we have been receiving regular news of attacks on temples in Australia.” In the UK, aggressive demonstrations before the High Commission in 2019 against the lockdown in Kashmir and CAA/NRC had urged PM Modi to speak to then UK PM Boris Johnson over providing adequatesecurity to Indiandiplomaticpremises.
This, the UK official was reminded, was a basic obligation of the UK Government under the Vienna Convention. The ministry also said it finds "unacceptable" the "indifference of the UK Government to the security of Indian diplomatic premises and personnel".
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