ISLAMABAD/LONDON: Khalistani supporters on Sunday replaced the Indian flag with a Khalistan flag at the Indian High Commission building in London in a major show of support for the secessionist Sikh movement.
Footage circulating on social media showed a group of around two dozen Sikh youth gathered outside the Indian High Commission in Central London, raising Sikh religious slogans and demanding the creation of Khalistan.
One of the protestors scaled the building from the front and made it to the top balcony where the Indian flag was hoisted. Within seconds, he took down the tricolour and replaced it with the Khalistan flag.
The incident comes a day after the Indian police launched a “manhunt” to arrest prominent Sikh leader Amritpal Singh.
Mobile and internet services were suspended in several parts of Indian Punjab and statewide “cordon-and-search operations” were launched against ‘Waris Punjab De’, an organization run by Singh, a Khalistani leader.
New Delhi’s response to protest outside Indian High Commission
Lodging a strong protest against the incident outside its high commission in London, New Delhi summoned the British Deputy High Commissioner Christina Scott to the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) on Sunday night.
India lodges strong protest with UK.
Press Release ➡️ https://t.co/Apz9tgy1Ki pic.twitter.com/PV2VyUw1Lt
— Randhir Jaiswal (@MEAIndia) March 19, 2023
The British envoy was asked for an explanation on the happening and for a full enquiry, the MEA said in a statement as it termed the British government’s attitude toward the security of Indian diplomats “unacceptable”.
Khalistan Referendum
On Sunday, more than 11,000 Sikhs voted in the second phase of the Khalistan Referendum at the Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre that was disrupted after the electronic online voting system came under a massive cyber security attack by suspected Indian hackers.
The polling was organised by the pro-Khalistan secessionist group Sikhs For Justice (SFJ) which said there was evidence indicating that the Indian state-backed hackers were behind the planned attack.
The group said this was not the first time that New Delhi had done so, as similar attempts have been made during previous referendums across Europe.
