Former Ambassador KP Fabian Criticizes Canada's Surveillance of Indian Diplomats

In New Delhi, former Indian diplomat KP Fabian has expressed strong disapproval of Canada's surveillance activities targeting Indian diplomats. He described these actions as "completely wrong" and emphasized that the "right to privacy is for everyone unless someone has committed an offence." Fabian argued that such surveillance is unjustified unless an individual is under investigation for a specific crime.

Fabian stated, "Canada itself said officially that certain consular officials and others are under surveillance... This is completely wrong on the part of Canada... The right to privacy is for everyone unless someone has committed an offence. If someone has committed an offence and that person is under investigation, then the police need to tap into that person's telephone, email and all that. But that's not the case here because if our official has committed something wrong, then they should tell us."

He also commented on the diplomatic tensions, noting, "This tit-for-tat retaliation is not good for either (country) as the government of Canada, headed by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, seems to be very hell-bent on escalating. That doesn't mean India has to cooperate in escalating this. Sometimes we have to retaliate, sometimes we don't have to retaliate."

Indian Government's Response

Earlier, Randhir Jaiswal, spokesperson for the Ministry of External Affairs, condemned the surveillance of Indian diplomats in Canada, labeling it "totally unacceptable." Jaiswal highlighted the increased threats against Indian diplomats, mentioning instances of harassment, intimidation, and surveillance.

Jaiswal stated, "Indian diplomats are being put under surveillance, which is totally unacceptable. EAM also has spoken about it. We had also taken up the matter very strongly with the Canadian side on it." He added, "Over the last year or even more, the kind of things that we have seen attacking Indian diplomats, threatening, intimidating, harassing Indian diplomats... Yes, the threats have increased."

Media Coverage Concerns

Fabian also questioned the lack of coverage in Canadian media regarding the ban of Australia Today, a media outlet. He remarked, "If Canada has done it, it is wrong because you cannot be speaking of freedom of expression and doing this (banning the media outlet)." He noted the absence of this news in Canadian media like the Global Mail and CBC News.

The Ministry of External Affairs criticized Canada for its "hypocrisy towards freedom of speech," as the Canadian government "blocked" the social media handles and pages of Australia Today. Jaiswal mentioned, "We understand that the social media handles, and pages of this particular outlet, which is an important diaspora outlet, have been blocked and are not available for viewers in Canada."