External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar will be hopping the video-call meeting initiated by Canadian Foreign Minister François-Philippe Champagne on Monday. The decision comes days after Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s comments on the ongoing farmer protests at Delhi border. However, an official message has been conveyed to Canada that Jaishankar will not be able to attend the video-call due to “scheduling issues”.
Sources have advised that linking Jaishankar’s denial to participate in the meeting with that of issue of comments from the Canadian leadership is not right, as no such reason has been cited by New Delhi.
According to sources, “If it was indeed an action to convey India’s displeasure, we would have said so. We wouldn’t have given schedule as a reason.”
Video-call meetings with Foreign ministers of Brazil, France, Germany, Italy, Singapore and the United Kingdom have been initiated by Canada since March 15, and by far has conducted 11 such video-calls. On November 3, Jaishankar took part in the 11th call of the ministerial coordination group on Covid-19 hosted by Canada.
Meanwhile, the spokesperson for UN chief Antonio Guterres and a group of 36 cross-party UK leaders have supported the Indian farmer’s protests, stating they have a right to demonstrate peacefully.
The British Sikh Labour MP Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi on Friday issued a letter, signed by other Indian-origin MPs, including Labour’s Virendra Sharma, Seema Malhotra and Valerie Vaz as well as former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, urging ministers to fix an urgent meeting to discuss over the “deteriorating situation in the Punjab”.
Also Read: Diljit Dosanjh is on ‘winning hearts’, donates 1 crore to protesting farmers to buy warm clothes
The members have also enquired upon any update on any communication the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) has had with the Indian government on the issue.
The FCDO spokesperson has said that they have not received the letter as yet, adding “The police handling of protests is a matter for the government of India.”