Deplore Misuse of Democratic Freedoms: India’s Strong Message After Jaishankar’s Security Breach In London

New Delhi/London: India took strong exception to Khalistani sympathisers breaching the security of External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar in London. India said it expects the UK to live up to their diplomatic obligations. India denounced the misuse of democratic freedoms by such elements.

“We deplore the misuse of democratic freedoms by such elements. We expect the host government in such cases to fully live up to their diplomatic obligations,” MEA added.

A pro-Khalistan extremist managed to breach the security barricades. He tore the Indian flag in front of the minister’s convoy. The act was captured on video, which has gone viral on social media.

This comes as a group of pro-Khalistan extremists attempted to disrupt Jaishankar’s visit to Chatham House in London. The EAM was leaving the Chatham House venue after the discussion when the incident occurred.

While the protester tore the tricolour in front of the convoy, others in his group shouted slogans at a distance.  Another video shared by the news agency ANI showed the group of pro-Khalistan extremists protesting outside the Chatham House. The group can be seen shouting pro-Khalistani slogans.

SJaishankar is currently on an official visit to the United Kingdom. He is scheduled to be there till March 9.

Here’s how Jaishankar responds to Pakistani journalist’s tough question

Jaishankar held extensive discussions at Chevening House with UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy, covering a wide range of bilateral issues, including strategic coordination, political cooperation, trade negotiations, education, technology, mobility, and people-to-people exchanges.

He then went to Chatham House for a scheduled discussion. Jaishankar addressed a pointed question from a Pakistani journalist at the Chatham House. The journalist claimed he would make Jaishankar “little nervous” while asking the question. The journalist also accused India of “illegally occupying Kashmir”.

Claiming that “Kashmiris are up in arms”, the journalist alleged that “India has stationed one million troops to control seven million Kashmiris.” The journalist then asked whether Prime Minister Narendra Modi could use his friendship with US President Donald Trump to resolve the Kashmir issue.

To this, Jaishankar firmly rejected third-party intervention. He defended India’s approach in dealing with the Kashmir issue.

“In Kashmir, we have done a good job solving most of it. I think removing Article 370 was one step. Then, restoring growth, economic activity, and social justice in Kashmir was step number two. Holding elections, which were done with a very high turnout, was step number three,” he said.

The minister insisted that the unresolved aspect of the Kashmir issue was out of India’s control. “I think the part we are waiting for is thereturn of the stolen part of Kashmir, which is under an illegal Pakistani occupation. When that’s done, I assure you, Kashmir solved,” Jaishankar stated.

Jaishankar on Trump’s leadership

The discussion then revolved around India’s relationship with the US, particularly under Trump’s leadership. Jaishankar said Washington’s shift towards a multipolar world was in sync  with India’s interests.

“We see a president and an administration which, in our parlance, is moving towards multipolarity, and that is something that suits India,” he said.

He also pointed to the Quad alliance-comprising India, the US, Australia, and Japan-as a successful instance of cooperation. “From President Trump’s perspective, the one big shared enterprise that we have is the Quad, which is an understanding where everybody pays their fair share. There are no free riders involved. So that’s a good model which works,” he added.

He also confirmed that India and the US had agreed on the need for a bilateral trade pact, following the recent discussions between PM Modi and Trump at White House. He informed that the Indian Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal was in Washington to take these negotiations forward. “We had a very open conversation about it (tariffs), and the result of that conversation was that we agreed on the need for a bilateral trade agreement,” he said.

‘…..there is no policy to replace the dollar’

Jaishankar also addressed a range of other issues, including dollar’s dominance. “I don’t believe there is any policy on our part to replace the dollar. At the end of the day, the dollar as a reserve currency contributes to international economic stability, and what the world needs right now is more stability, not less,” he said.

The minister also addressed questions on India’s relationship with China, the internationalization of the rupee, the role of the US dollar in the global economy, and the stance of BRICS countries on the matter.