IndiaB次元官网网址檚 high commission in Canada said on Wednesday that the countryB次元官网网址檚 officials will resume processing some types of visa applications in Ottawa and at consulates in Toronto and Vancouver.
The decision came a month after New Delhi suspended the services in Canada and for Canadian citizens worldwide.
The high commission said it is resuming business, medical and conference visas, as well as entry for people with family ties in India, beginning on Thursday. It did not include information about other types of visas.
The Canadian Press confirmed the authenticity of social-media posts about the decision, and has sought clarity on whether tourist, student and journalist visas will also be processed.
The resumption of what India calls an entry visa, which is restricted to B次元官网网址減ersons of Indian origin,B次元官网网址� or spouses or children of such persons or of Indian citizens, follows uproar online from Canadians who have been unable to visit their relatives during the countryB次元官网网址檚 wedding season.
India introduced the restrictions on visas last month after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced in the House of Commons that CanadaB次元官网网址檚 intelligence services were probing B次元官网网址渃redibleB次元官网网址� information about B次元官网网址渁 potential linkB次元官网网址� between IndiaB次元官网网址檚 government and the killing of a Canadian Sikh leader in British Columbia.
India stopped issuing visas in Ottawa, Toronto and Vancouver on Sept. 21, and eventually stopped serving Canadian citizens in other parts of the world, too.
The statement from the high commission did not indicate whether Canadians in other countries can now also apply for visas through IndiaB次元官网网址檚 missions worldwide.
New Delhi argued the reason for the move was that its diplomats in Canada could not safely get to work.
That was despite High Commissioner Sanjay Kumar Verma saying in an interview with The Canadian Press three weeks earlier that he was B次元官网网址渧ery satisfiedB次元官网网址� with Canada for ramping up protections.
The diplomatic mission said it chose to resume processing some visa services starting on Thursday B次元官网网址渁fter a considered review of the security situation that takes into account some recent Canadian measures in this regard.B次元官网网址�
It noted that B次元官网网址渇urther decisions, as appropriate, would be intimated based on continuing evaluation of the situation.B次元官网网址�
On Wednesday afternoon, Immigration Minister Marc Miller called the move B次元官网网址渁 good signB次元官网网址� after B次元官网网址渁n anxious timeB次元官网网址� for his many Canadians.
B次元官网网址淥ur feeling is that a suspension should never have happened in the first place,B次元官网网址� he added.
Emergency Preparedness Minister Harjit Sajjan said the resumption of visa processing is good news, but wouldnB次元官网网址檛 speculate on what message New Delhi is trying to send.
B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 good to see that they have resumed that. It would have been nice (if) they didnB次元官网网址檛 take it in the first place,B次元官网网址� Sajjan told reporters.
He added that Ottawa is still seeking IndiaB次元官网网址檚 help as police investigate the killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar.
B次元官网网址淭here was a Canadian thatB次元官网网址檚 killed on Canadian soil, and weB次元官网网址檝e been asking for greater co-operation with the investigation,B次元官网网址� Sajjan said.
In a statement, the Canada-India Business Council said it was B次元官网网址渁 promising developmentB次元官网网址� for trade.
B次元官网网址淚t is also a positive sign that both governments have expressed their support for bilateral business and investments amidst these unusual times,B次元官网网址� wrote council head Victor Thomas.
Before TrudeauB次元官网网址檚 announcement dramatically heightened tensions between Canada and India, New Delhi had publicly denounced protests by Sikh separatist groups outside its diplomatic missions in Canada, as well as posters that appeared to offer cash rewards in exchange for the home addresses of Indian diplomats.
India formally called on Canada to better uphold its duty to protect foreign diplomats.
Foreign Affairs Minister M茅lanie Joly said on Sept. 14 that Indian diplomats in Canada B次元官网网址渉ave 24/7 security,B次元官网网址� which is a service Ottawa offers to very few diplomatic missions.
IndiaB次元官网网址檚 foreign affairs minister, Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, said on the weekend that his country was looking at relaxing the visa restrictions.
B次元官网网址淲e stopped issuing visas in Canada because it was no longer safe for our diplomats to go to work to issue visas,B次元官网网址� he said on Sunday.
Jaishankar also said he took issue with the federal Liberals, in comments that analysts said marked the first time that New Delhi had framed its concerns with Canada along political lines.
B次元官网网址淭he problems we have are with a certain segment of Canadian politics, and the policies which flow from that,B次元官网网址� Jaishankar said.
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