On Sunday, a protester pulled down the Indian flag from the High Commission of India in London during a demonstration by advocates of Khalistan.
A man is seen taking down the Indian flag on the balcony in a video of the event. Near the end of the footage, a man who appears to be an Indian official enters the mission and runs to the balcony, where he grabs the flag before the protester can cause any more damage.
A small group of Khalistani fans protested with flags and Amritpal Singh posters on Sunday, bringing down the Indian flag that was flying over the Indian High Commission in London.
“FreeAmritpalSingh, We Want Justice, We Stand With Amritpal Singh,” the banners with Singh’s picture read. Social media videos showed a man climbing the High Commission’s walls to lower the Indian flag as “Khalistan Zindabad” chants were heard in the background.
Alex Ellis, the UK’s high commissioner to India, tweeted his condemnation of the episode shortly after it happened. He wrote: “I condemn the disgraceful acts today against the people and premises of the Indian High commission – totally unacceptable.”
Social media was flooded with pictures of broken windows and men scaling the India House building, and videos from the incident show an Indian official snatching the flag from a protester through the mission’s first-floor window.
Amritpal Singh, the fugitive Khalistani leader, is being sought by the Punjab Police, who began a massive search for him on Saturday. However, according to the authorities, the separatist leader continues to elude them.
On Sunday, pro-Khalistan demonstrators demonstrated outside the Indian High Commission in London. One protester scaled the mission’s balcony during the demonstration and took the banner down. Khalistani flags were being waved by the demonstrators.
The separatist movement known as the “Khalistan movement” calls for the creation of a Sikh country named Khalistan within the borders of India. Before it finally subsided in the 1990s, the Khalistan movement waged a bloody insurgency in India for decades, focusing mainly in Punjab. Although the armed element subsided by the 1990s, the movement that tries to stir up trouble in India continues to enjoy strong support abroad, particularly in the United Kingdom and Canada.
The tricolor was now flying “grander” after the vandalism, according to representatives of the Indian mission, who claimed the “attempted but failed” assault was stopped.
The vandalism committed by supporters of Khalistan at the Indian embassy in London occurs as Punjabi authorities crack down on Amritpal Singh, a supporter of Khalistan, and his hardline group Waris Punjab De.
