New Delhi has conveyed its “strong protest” to Washington over an attack on the Indian consulate in San Francisco city during a protest staged by Khalistani protestors, the Indian Foreign Ministry said in a statement late on Monday evening.
As per the statement, the US Ambassador to India was reminded of Washington’s “basic obligations” under the Vienna Convention to protect Indian diplomatic premises in the US.
The Indian Embassy in Washington also raised New Delhi’s concerns with the US State Department.
According to videos circulating on social media, the doors, and windows of the Indian consulate in San Francisco were smashed by vandals, and anti-India graffiti was also painted on the walls of the diplomatic mission.
Hours after New Delhi’s official protest, the Biden administration condemned the act of vandalism, adding that the Diplomatic Security Service was working with local authorities to carry out a proper probe into the matter.
Indian Missions Abroad Under Threat
The incident in San Francisco came as just another instance in which an Indian diplomatic mission was targeted by Khalistani supporters abroad.
On Sunday, the Indian High Commission in London was targeted by radical Sikh preacher Singh's sympathizers on Sunday. The Khalistani protestors tried to take down the Indian flag from the building, which was narrowly avoided by officials at the premises.
The incident has generated massive outrage in India.
Late on Sunday evening, India summoned the seniormost British diplomat in New Delhi to demand an explanation for the complete “absence” of security at the Indian mission.
New Delhi asked the British authorities to identify, arrest and prosecute the protestors involved in the vandalizing of the Indian mission, as per an official statement.
Meanwhile, sections of British media reported that a person has been arrested in connection with the London incident.