India restored electronic visa services for Canadian nationals, an Indian foreign ministry official said Wednesday, two months after Canada alleged the South Asian nation was involved in the assassination of a Sikh separatist in Canada.
The electronic visa was back in order on Wednesday, an official told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity as he was not authorized to speak to reporters. Sources also confirmed the move to CBC News.
The move could ease tensions between the two countries that swapped accusations and expelled each other’s diplomats with India introducing a visa ban on Canadian nationals.
A diplomatic spat has erupted between the two countries after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said in September that there were “credible allegations” of Indian involvement in the killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Surrey, B.C.
Featured VideoThe government has made allegations that India’s government and its intelligence agency were involved in the killing of a citizen, Hardeep Singh Nijjar, on Canadian soil, but some don’t think it was possible. CBC’s Adrienne Arsenault breaks down whether it’s capable of what it is being accused of and the implications if it’s true.
Nijjar, a 45-year-old Sikh activist and plumber, was killed by masked gunmen in June in Surrey, outside Vancouver.
For years, India had said that Nijjar, a Canadian citizen born in India, had links to terrorism, an allegation he denied. India dismissed the Canadian allegation of its involvement in his killing as “absurd.”
New Delhi’s worries about Sikh separatist groups in Canada have long strained the relationship between the two countries, despite maintaining strong defence and trade ties.
India had previously accused Canada of harbouring separatists and “terrorists.”
The allegation brought the discord to the forefront with Canada recalling 41 of its 62 diplomats in India after New Delhi warned it would strip their diplomatic immunity — something Canadian officials characterized as a violation of the Geneva Convention.
Last month, India eased the ban and resumed services for entry, business, medical and conference visas for Canadian nationals.