Khalistani extremists target EAM Jaishankar's convoy in London, India reacts

London: A man from a small group of protesters chanting pro-Khalistan slogans outside Chatham House attempted to breach the security perimeter as External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar left the think tank in London, drawing condemnation from India over the provocative activities of this "small group of separatists and extremists".

⚡️Khalistan Protester Jumps In Front Of EAM Jaishankar's Car In London

The agitator was reportedly briefly detained & released. The incident comes after the EAM met PM Starmer & raised concerns about anti-India groups in the 🇬🇧.
pic.twitter.com/xWqzJujfeV

— RT_India (@RT_India_news) March 6, 2025

The group waving separatist flags was barricaded and monitored by a significant police presence outside the venue on Wednesday night, with officers rushing to restrain the man as he ran past the barricade in an attempt to block the path of the minister’s car pulling at an Indian flag.

He was swiftly taken aside by Metropolitan Police officers and no arrests have been reported so far.

“It is shameful that this attack comes when Dr S Jaishankar is on a UK tour and had just completed a successful meeting with UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy where they discussed bilateral ties,” said community organisation INSIGHT UK, posting footage of the incident on social media.

𝐊𝐡𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐢 𝐞𝐱𝐭𝐫𝐞𝐦𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐬 𝐡𝐞𝐜𝐤𝐥𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐚𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐦𝐩𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐚𝐭𝐭𝐚𝐜𝐤 𝐈𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐚’𝐬 𝐄𝐱𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐀𝐟𝐟𝐚𝐢𝐫𝐬 𝐌𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐃𝐫 𝐒 𝐉𝐚𝐢𝐒𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐤𝐚𝐫 𝐢𝐧 𝐋𝐨𝐧𝐝𝐨𝐧

Khalistani extremists heckle India’s External Foreign Affairs Minister Dr… pic.twitter.com/mGQn87eZye

— INSIGHT UK (@INSIGHTUK2) March 5, 2025

The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) in New Delhi condemned the incident of the security breach and called on the UK government to "live up to their diplomatic obligations".

"We have seen the footage of a breach of security during the visit of the external affairs minister to the UK," MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said in New Delhi.

"We condemn the provocative activities of this small group of separatists and extremists. 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," he said.

Earlier, during his session at Chatham House, the EAM was asked about human rights concerns pertaining to India.

“A lot of this is political. We have been for political reasons at the receiving end of a lot of expressions and campaigns on human rights. We listen to it. We are not perfect, nobody is perfect. There can be situations which require redressal and remedy,” said Jaishankar.

“But I would actually argue, if one looks around the world, we have a very strong human rights record," he said.

"As a credible democracy, where people have growing faith in our democracy, where representation has broadened in every conceivable way over the last many decades, where the state has been very fair in terms of treatment of its citizens, I think any sweeping concern on human rights is misplaced. I don’t see any justification for it at all,” he added.