India complains to Pak on harassment of diplomats
The Indian high commission in Islamabad detailed the harassment in a note verbale submitted to Pakistan’s foreign ministry on March 13
THE DEPUTY HIGH COMMISSIONER WAS AGGRESSIVELY FOLLOWED ON A MOTORCYCLE WHILE GOING FROM HIS RESIDENCE TO A MARKET ON MARCH 10
NEW DELHI: India has formally complained to Pakistan about at least 15 instances of harassment of its diplomats and officers in Islamabad, including aggressive tailing and a visit by security personnel to an ill official admitted to a hospital, over the past two weeks.
The Indian high commission in Islamabad detailed the harassment in a note verbale – an unsigned diplomatic correspondence – submitted to Pakistan’s foreign ministry on March 13, people familiar with developments said.
The complaint comes in the backdrop of tensions between the two sides in the aftermath of the February 14 suicide bombing in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pulwama, which left 40 Central Reserve Police Force men dead.
Pakistan-based Jaish-e-mohammed (JEM) claimed responsibility for the bombing. The attack prompted India to conduct an air strike on a JEM camp in Pakistan on February 26. An aerial combat between the two countries followed a day later over the skies of Kashmir.
The note verbale said two Pakistani personnel had been following high commissioner Ajay Bisaria daily. A first secretary and the naval adviser were both aggressively tailed in cars while travelling for work on March 8.
The following day, India’s deputy high commissioner was aggressively tailed on a motorcycle while going from his resi- dence to a market and again while travelling from the mission to his residence and then to the home of the Indian envoy.
The deputy high commissioner was again aggressively followed on a motorcycle while going from his residence to a market on March 10.
The naval adviser was aggressively followed by a car while going from his residence to the Islamabad Club and another officer’s residence on March 9 and 10. On March 11, the naval and military advisers were aggressively tailed by a car while going from their residences to the mission and back. Pakistani personnel approached the personal security officer of the high commissioner while he was admitted to hospital, in an “intimidatory manner”, according to the note verbale.
The note also complained about an uptick in Pakistani security personnel being deployed outside homes of officers and diplomats in recent weeks. These personnel have been pressuring local security guards outside the homes to provide details of the movements of Indian officials, the note added.
On March 9 and 10, Pakistani personnel were spotted “keeping static surveillance” outside the home of the deputy high commissioner and they also met the local security guard regularly and sought details regarding the official.
The note also cited instances of two Indian officers receiving several “hoax calls” from the same number over the past few days.
The Indian side asked Pakistani authorities to “investigate these incidents urgently and instruct the relevant agencies to ensure that similar incidents do not recur”. It noted that such incidents of harassment violate the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations and that the safety and security of Indian high commission officers, staff members and their families is the responsibility of the Pakistani government.