Washington, Jan 23 (IANS) Nearly hours after meeting with newly appointed US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Wednesday, External Affairs Minister (EAM) S. Jaishankar said that “India expects accountability” for the attack on the Indian consulate in San Francisco in 2023 a “very serious matter” and those responsible to be held accountable.
He was in the US to attend Donald Trump’s inauguration as the 47th President.
Responding to a question at a press conference in Washington D.C. on Wednesday, EAM Jaishankar said, “The arson attack on our consulate in San Francisco is a very, very serious matter, and it is something for which we expect accountability. We would like to see that people who did it are held responsible.”
The Consulate General of India in San Francisco was attacked by a group of assailants in March 2023. The intruders had committed criminal trespass, damaged public property, and attacked officials of the Consulate.
Some attackers had also tried to set the Consulate building on fire on the same day with the use of some inflammable substances.
Protesters were seen breaking through the makeshift security barriers while raising pro-Khalistan slogans and even installing two Khalistani flags inside the Consulate premises.
Around three months later, again in July, violent Khalistani activists attacked and sought to burn down the Indian consulate in San Francisco.
The incident, though, did not cause any damage inside the premises of the diplomatic building, but it was the second time that Khalistanis made the SF consulate a target.
At the time, the attack was brought to the attention of the highest rung of American national security and diplomatic apparatus in Washington D.C., which instructed agencies to immediately investigate the incident and heighten security.
India had made it clear that it wanted to see action in the matter, and not just sympathy. It wanted arrests of those involved in these incidents and preemptive measures by the US authorities to stop any such attacks in the future.
The local San Francisco police department, special diplomatic security personnel, and state and federal authorities were notified and they launched a probe into the July incident thereafter.
The incident was strongly condemned by the US, which called it a “criminal offence”.
EAM Jaishankar held a bilateral meeting with Marco Rubio after the swearing-in ceremony of Donald Trump.
The two leaders also, according to EAM Jaishankar, held a brief discussion on Bangladesh. However, the EAM did not get into further details on the same and said that “I don’t think it’s appropriate”.
EAM Jaishankar had also attended the first Quad ministerial meeting of the new Donald Trump administration on Tuesday and held the first bilateral meeting with Rubio shortly after.
In addition, the EAM also raised India’s concerns over prolonged visa delays with Rubio, saying that these delays impact business, tourism, and the overall relationship.
He had said that the relationship is not “well-served” if it takes that many days for people to get a visa.
–IANS
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