India condemns security breach by protester

7/3/2025 6:23

India condemned on

Thursday a security breach during its foreign minister's visit

to London when a protester broke through a police cordon, stood

in front of the minister's car and tore the Indian flag before

being taken away.



India's foreign ministry said it expects Britain to live up

to its diplomatic obligations and called the protesters a "small

group of separatists and extremists".



Britain said it "strongly condemned" the incident.



A small group of protesters shouting slogans and waving

flags of a Sikh separatist movement called Khalistan had

gathered outside think tank Chatham House in London on Wednesday

where foreign minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar was speaking.



Videos posted to social media showed a member from the group

breaking away from the police cordon as Jaishankar was leaving

the venue, and taken away by police officers within seconds.



Jaishankar is on a six-day trip to Britain and Ireland.



"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," Randhir Jaiswal, the

spokesperson for the Indian foreign ministry, said in a

statement.



Britain said it upheld the right to peaceful protest but any

attempts to intimidate, threaten or disrupt public events were

"completely unacceptable".



"We remain fully committed to ensuring the security of all

our diplomatic visitors, in line with our international

obligations," a spokesperson for Britain's Foreign Office said.



Police said no arrests had been made.



"(The protester) was quickly intercepted by officers and

moved out of the way. He did not get close to the minister who

was able to leave the area without further incident," a

spokesperson for London's Metropolitan Police said.



The Khalistan movement advocates a separate Sikh homeland

carved out of Hindu-majority India and is considered a security

threat by the Indian government. It has been a flashpoint in an

increasingly tense relationship between Canada and India.



In April 2023, India asked Britain for increased monitoring

of UK-based Khalistan supporters after protesters detached the

Indian flag from the diplomatic mission's building.