NEW DELHI: The United Kingdom is taking necessary measures to ensure the safety and security of the Indian High Commission in London and its staff members, British Security Minister Tom Tugendhat said, around five months after the mission was attacked by pro-Khalistani forces that put the bilateral ties under some strain.

The senior minister said the British government is addressing India’s concerns over activities of pro-Khalistani elements and that any attempt to radicalise people in the UK will be dealt with by the law-enforcing authorities.

“Let me be very clear about this. This is not an Indian problem in the UK. Whenever there is radicalisation in the UK of UK citizens, this is a British problem. And so any attempt to radicalise any UK citizen in any direction will be dealt with by the British government,” he said.

Also Read – Indian Coast Guard evacuates Chinese national after he suffers cardiac arrest on Arabian Sea “That is why we have the Prevent Programme and we are using it to face those challenges of radicalisation across different communities,” he said. In March, India reacted angrily after pro-Khalistan elements attacked the Indian High Commission in London and pulled down the national flag from a pole at the front of the building. Tugendhat was in India on a three-day visit from August 10-12 primarily to attend the G-20 meeting G20 anti-corruption ministerial meeting in Kolkata.

In Delhi, he held talks with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and National Security Advisor Ajit Doval. “We work very closely in making sure that we’re supporting each other. In recent days and weeks, I have been very closely involved working with friends of ours and particularly with people in the Indian High Commission to make sure that they’re safe in London and that anyone who threatens them is dealt with by the law,” he said.

Also Read – Manipur violence: Arms, ammunition recovered, situation continues to remain tense in the state On Friday, Tugendhat announced new funding of 95,000 pound (around Rs 1 crore) to enhance Britain’s capability to tackle “pro-Khalistan extremism”. Highlighting the scope of overall security cooperation between India and the UK, the British Security minister said the gap between “where we are and where we could be” is significantly big. “I have a great privilege of meeting other governments in other countries to seek to improve our relations. And in many of them, there are small things we can do to improve the relationship,” he said.

“But the reality is the relationship (India-UK) is already very good or is unlikely to change much. One of the things that I see in India is the gap between where we are and where we could be is the greatest. And I think there’s a huge amount more we can do,” he said.

Source: milleniumpost.in