External affairs minister Sushma Swaraj called off a bilateral meeting with her Canadian counterpart Chrystia Freeland, expected to be held in the last week of April, more than a month after a senior Canadian government official said “rogue political elements” in India may have orchestrated the embarrassing invitation of Khalistani militant Jaspal Atwal to a formal dinner with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in New Delhi.
Highly placed Indian officials told Hindustan Times the April meeting had been cancelled and no new date has been set. Swaraj and Freeland were to meet for a dialogue after the latter invited her to Ottawa when they met in New Delhi on February 22, a day before Prime Minister Narendra Modi met Trudeau.
HT reported that the external affairs ministry of India, however, said no meeting had been scheduled. “All high level meetings are decided through diplomatic channels. As and when such a trip is finalised, an announcement will be made,” an official told the newspaper.
The ties between the two nations turned further bitter after Trudeau did not refute the “conspiracy theory” that Indian government factions sabotaged his trip by approving the visa for Atwal.
Full article: outlookindia.com