India reopens visa services for Canadians, calming diplomatic spat

India has moved to renew visa services for Canadian citizens, easing a diplomatic row between the two states over the killing of a Sikh activist on Canadian soil.

India has moved to renew visa services for Canadian citizens, easing a diplomatic row between the two states over the killing of a Sikh activist on Canadian soil.

India announced it would begin reissuing visas for entry, business, medical and conferences on Thursday, reversing a month-long ban. The Indian High Commission, along with India’s consulates in Toronto and Vancouver, will continue to deal with emergency services.

Canadian Emergency Preparedness Minister Harjit Sajjan welcomed the decision as “good news for Canadians”.

India shut down visa services to Canadians over a month ago after Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau accused Delhi of potential involvement in the killing of 45-year-old Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar on Canadian soil.

Nijjar was shot dead by masked attackers outside a Sikh temple near Vancouver on June 18.

India had long accused Indian-born Nijjar, who supported an independent Sikh state within India, of terror links, charges he denied.

India vehemently denied any connection to the murder, saying such claims were “absurd” and politically driven.