Canada report claims India denying visas to Khalistanis, but here is the irony

Amid the ongoing diplomatic spat between India and Canada, a Canadian news report has claimed that New Delhi has been denying visas to pro-Khalistani citizens unless they explicitly denounce their support for separatism. The report, based on interviews with Sikh Canadians, including by a member of the gurdwara that was headed by slain terrorist Hardeep Nijjar, has come under scathing criticism from geopolitical experts over its underlying irony.

On one hand, these Khalistani activists aggressively spew hate against India and target consular offices, but cry foul over visa restrictions that simply require an undertaking pledging allegiance to India’s sovereignty. In fact, several experts have pointed out that every country has such requirements before granting visas, with nations like the United States having a stricter procedure.

WHAT CANADIAN NEWS REPORT SAID?

As per the Global News report, several pro-Khalistani Canadians have claimed that they were made to sign letters denouncing Khalistan separatism and affirming their respect for India as a pre-condition for visas. They have accused India of using visas as a tool for its foreign interference campaign.

One such claim was made by Bikramjit Singh Sandhar, the former president of Guru Nanak Gurdwara in Surrey — where Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Nijjar was its chief before being killed in June 2023.

Sandhar, a Khalistani sympathiser, told Global News that his visa application in 2016 to attend a family gathering was denied by India. Sandhar claimed Indian consular officials in Vancouver flagged certain statements he made about Khalistan while serving as the gurdwara president.

Days later, Sandhar claimed he was asked to sign a form renouncing separatist activities and professing his “deep respect” for India. He was to sign the form proclaiming India was his “mother country”, “great” and “democratic”. However, Sandhar said he refused to sign the form.

Global News said similar forms were sent to other pro-Khalistani Canadian Sikhs by Indian consulate staff in Vancouver in exchange for a visa. Those who signed the form were granted entry.

GEOPOLITICAL EXPERTS, ANALYSTS TAKE SARCASTIC SWIPES

The report has sparked a debate on social media, with several political commentators and geopolitical experts pointing out the irony of the resentment of these activists who berate India day in, day out, but play the victim card when denied visas.

Calling it a “wild story”, popular Canadian political expert Daniel Bordman took a sarcastic dig at the indignation of the pro-Khalistani Sikhs, saying he was “baffled” by the concept of a country having “control of the people they let through their boarders”.

“Can you believe that India had the audacity to require a man who ran a temple with pictures all over it praising mass murdering terrorists as hero’s and a giant billboard calling to assassinate Indian government officials outside to fill out a form denouncing terrorism before allowing him to enter India! A form!!! He could have gotten carpal tunnel syndrome! Their cruelty has no limits,” Bordman said.

A geopolitical analyst pointed out on X that every country asks this sort of question before granting a visa. “No one likes a bad apple coming into their country… My issue is with news channels here in Canada, don’t they research properly before posting?” the analyst posted on X.

Pointing out the hypocrisy, another user tweeted that Canada demands Indian military personnel to disclose the places they served in the country for visas. “They don’t require anything like this from terrorists,” the user said.

Another tweeted, “Do you know while applying for US Visas one has to provide details of social media subscribed to?”