New Delhi: Canada blocked Australia Today’s social media handles hours after the news outlet carried External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar’s joint press conference with his Australian counterpart, Penny Wong, according to the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA).

During Tuesday’s joint press conference, Jaishankar raised concerns regarding India’s ongoing diplomatic spat with Canada over the latter’s allegations of the involvement of Indian government officials in the killing of Sikh separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar on Canadian soil.

Jaishankar said Canada “has developed a pattern of making allegations without providing specifics”. Calling Canadian surveillance of Indian diplomats “unacceptable”, he stressed that the “political space” given to the “extremist voice” in Canada becomes evident in how recent events have unfolded.

Jaishankar was on an official visit to Australia from 3 to 7 November for the 15th Foreign Ministers Framework Dialogue. As part of this visit, he inaugurated a consulate in Brisbane before calling on Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Foreign Affairs Minister Penny Wong.

Wong, during the joint press conference, said that Australia respects Canada’s judicial process and has raised its concerns over the Nijjar matter with India.

Australia Today, a media organisation set up by a member of the Indian diaspora in Australia, extensively covered Jaishankar’s visit to Australia and interviewed him. Founder-editor Jitarth Jai Bharadwaj previously worked as a journalist in India in the early 2000s.

The Canadian authorities have not commented on the action against Australia Today.

However, on Thursday, India’s Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) criticised the action, saying it “highlights Canada’s hypocrisy towards freedom of speech”.

“Yes, you have heard it correctly. We understand that social media handles and pages of this particular outlet, an important diaspora outlet, have been blocked and are not available for users in Canada,” said MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal.

The block, Jaiswal said, “came hours after the organisation carried the joint press conference of EAM Jaishankar with his Australian counterpart Penny Wong”.

He implied that Jaishankar’s remarks condemning the surveillance of Indian diplomats and about the lack of evidence in Canada’s allegations prompted the North American country to take action against Australia Today.

“You can draw your conclusions,” said spokesperson Jaiswal, referencing Jaishankar’s comments.

“It looked strange to us,” he added during a media briefing Thursday while noting that Australia Today is significant among diaspora communities in Australia.

(Edited by Madhurita Goswami)

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