Under pressure from the Indian government, particularly from Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh's office, the Canadian government has finally distanced itself from the "public officers" in the Canadian embassy in India who had, in a "routine" manner, denied visa to former officers of the Border Security officer, Intelligence Bureau and the Indian army.
In a statement issued by Jason Kenney, minister for for citizenship, immigration and multi-culturalism on Thursday night, Canada has said the language used while denying the visa "doesn't reflect the policy of the Canada government."
PTI adds: Canada on Friday expressed "deep regret" over the language used by its officials against Indian defence and security establishments, saying it has created an "inaccurate impression" which does not reflect the position or policy of the Canadian government.
In a damage-control exercise, Kenney hailed the Indian defence and security institutions, saying they operate "under the framework of democratic processes and the rule of law."
Terming as "unfortunate" the incidents involving use of foul language by Canadian high commission in visa rejection letters to some individuals, Kenney said, "This language, or the inaccurate impression it has created, in no way reflects the policy or position of the Government of Canada."
In a statement emailed from Ottawa, he said, "The Government of Canada, therefore, deeply regrets the recent incident in which letters drafted by public service officials during routine visa refusals to Indian nationals cast false aspersions on the legitimacy of work carried out by Indian defence and security institutions, which operate under the framework of democratic processes and the rule of law."
The comments came against the backdrop of an outrage in India over adverse comments made by Canadian high commission officials against Indian armed forces and intelligence establishment while rejecting the visas of some senior serving and retired officials.
