India lodges protest with Washington over vandalism of Consulate in San Francisco, State Department condemns incident

In a meeting with the US Charge d’Affaires in New Delhi on Monday, March 20, 2023, India conveyed its strong protest at the vandalism of the property of the Consulate General of India, San Francisco, ANI reported.

“The US Government was reminded of its basic obligation to protect and secure diplomatic representation. It was asked to take appropriate measures to prevent the recurrence of such incidents. Our Embassy in Washington D.C. also conveyed our concerns to the US State Department along similar lines,” said the Ministry of External Affairs statement available on the Facebook site of MEA.

News reports in major Indian papers attributed the vandalism to Khalistan supporters.

The Press Trust of India in its report, described the incident as follows: “Raising pro-Khalistan slogans, the protesters broke open the makeshift security barriers raised by the city police and installed two so-called Khalistani flags inside the Consulate premises. Two consulate personnel soon removed these flags.”

The PTI went on to say, “Thereafter, a group of protesters entered the consulate premises and started hitting the door and windows with iron rods.”

According to an NDTV report, the incident in San Francisco followed another one that took place in London, U.K. where Khalistan supporters are alleged to have pulled down the Indian flag from the Indian High Commission building. After that, in the U.S., “videos of a huge mob was seen attacking the Indian Consulate in US’s San Francisco while loud Punjabi music blared in the background. They also spray-painted a huge graffiti saying “Free Amritpal” on the outer wall of the building,” NDTV reported March 20.

The Hindustan Times reported, “Pro-Khalistan elements broke open the makeshift entry barriers raised by the city police and installed two ‘Khalistani’ flags inside the consulate premises in San Francisco.”

The U.S. State Department spokesperson indicated to ANI that the attack in San Francisco Consulate of India was unacceptable.

“The United States condemns the attack against the Indian Consulate and any attack against diplomatic facilities within the United States. We pledge to defend the safety and security of these facilities as well as the diplomats who work within them,” a US State Department spokesperson told ANI.