The United Kingdom has condemned an incident in which a group of Khalistani extremists attempted to disrupt the visit of Indian External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar in London, with the protest escalating into a security breach on Wednesday.
The incident occurred as Jaishankar was leaving the Chatham House venue after a discussion. A man ran toward his car and tore the Indian national flag in front of police officers. The UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth, and Development Office (FCDO) condemned the act, emphasizing that attempts to disrupt public events are completely unacceptable. “We strongly condemn the incident that took place outside Chatham House yesterday during the External Affairs Minister’s visit to the UK. While the UK upholds the right to peaceful protest, any attempts to intimidate, threaten, or disrupt public events are entirely unacceptable,” the FCDO said in a statement on Thursday.
The Metropolitan Police responded swiftly to the situation, and the FCDO reiterated its commitment to ensuring the security of all diplomatic visitors. “We remain fully committed to ensuring the security of all our diplomatic visitors, in line with our international obligations,” the statement added.
The UK’s response followed a strong reaction from the Indian government, which condemned the security breach and labeled the actions as “provocative.” The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) criticized the misuse of “democratic freedoms” by a small group of “separatists and extremists,” and issued a stern message to the UK. “We have seen the footage of a breach of security during the visit of EAM to the UK. We condemn the provocative activities of this small group of separatists and extremists. 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,” the MEA said in a statement.
A video of the incident, circulating online, shows the protester aggressively rushing toward the minister’s convoy, while the police initially seemed hesitant to act. The man is seen tearing the Indian tricolour as others shout slogans. However, the police soon intervened, taking the protester and other extremists into custody.
Earlier, Jaishankar had engaged in extensive discussions with UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy at Chevening House, covering a wide range of bilateral issues, including strategic coordination, political cooperation, trade negotiations, education, technology, mobility, and people-to-people exchanges.
During his discussion at Chatham House, Jaishankar was asked if Prime Minister Narendra Modi could leverage former US President Donald Trump’s enthusiasm for peace to resolve the Kashmir issue with Pakistan. Jaishankar firmly defended India’s stance, rejecting any need for third-party intervention. He stated that India had already taken decisive steps to address the situation, such as the abrogation of Article 370, economic development in the region, and the conduct of high-turnout elections.
