Continuing to take a strong view of pro-Khalistan supporters pulling down the Indian tricolour at the Indian High Commission in the United Kingdom, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Friday said India would not accept differential standards of security.
He also accused the UK of not meeting the obligation of providing security to the diplomats of the Mission, which is expected of a country where a high commission or a consulate is located.
“On the flag and the security of the high commission, in this particular case in the UK – whenever any country sends an embassy anywhere abroad, it is the obligation of the receiving country to provide security for a diplomat to do his work. It is the obligation of the receiving country to ensure the embassy or the high commission or the consulate and their premises are respected. These obligations were not met,” Mr Jaishankar said at an event organised by Bengaluru South MP Tejasvi Surya.
In a protest by Khalistan supporters at High Commission of India in London, a protestor on Sunday climbed the mission's balcony and pulled down the Indian flag.
In a video of the incident, a man is seen on the balcony bringing down the Indian flag. Towards the end of the video, a man believed to be an Indian official comes to the balcony from inside the mission and snatches the flag before the protestor could do any further vandalism.
The Delhi police yesterday registered a case in connection with the protest under appropriate sections of IPC, UAPA and PDPP Act. It was done after the Ministry of Home Affairs directed the Delhi Police to take appropriate legal action on the receipt of a report from the Ministry of External Affairs over the incident at the Indian High Commission March 19.
Replying to a question on the issue of threat to the diplomats and the Indian diaspora in the UK, the Minister said that on the day the vandals appeared before the high commission, the security at the high commission failed to meet expected standards.
“Many countries are very casual about it (security). They have a very different view about their own security and a different view about other people's security, but I can tell you as a foreign minister that we are not going to accept this kind of differential standards,” the EAM said.
(With inputs from PTI)
