ATWAL CAME TO INDIA ON EVISA

NEW DELHI: Jaspal Singh Atwal, once a convicted Khalistani terrorist, and the man who spoiled Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s party during his now controversial visit to India that ended on February 24, came to the country on an e-visa, two persons familiar with the development said on condition of anonymity.

Citizens of Canada, like Atwal are eligible for an India e-visa, a facility India extends to nationals of some 150 countries.

Since Atwal’s name was removed from the list of blacklisted Sikh militants by India’s home ministry in 2016, there was nothing that could have possibly prevented him from getting an e-visa. Getting e-visa involves a completely online application for which no facilitation. “He as a Canadian national and obtained an e-visa,” said an Indian official, adding that this doesn’t mean the “government of India had any role in him” being in India or being “invited to a reception hosted by the High Commission of that country for the visiting Prime Minister”. “The Canadian High Commission managed the guest lists.” The High Commission rescinded the invite, later.

External affairs ministry spokesperson Raveesh Kumar had earlier said the ministry would ascertain how Atwal got the visa. Atwal served five years of a 20-year prison sentence after being convicted of attempting to kill visiting Indian politician Malkiat Sidhu in 1986.

India, HT learns, had proposed that the visit begin with the official leg of the trip in Delhi, including meeting with PM Narendra Modi and a reception at the Rashtrapathi Bhavan. It isn’t clear how the itinerary was finalised — both sides would have signed off on it — but it was later pushed to the final leg of the trip.

The visit was from February 17 to 24 and the two PMS met on February 23.