Pro-Khalistan elements: US condemns attack on Indian consulate, India blocks Twitter accounts

San Francisco: After a group of separatist Sikhs attacked the Indian consulate in San Francisco in support of radical Khalistani leader Amritpal Singh, US official John Kirby said such actions are "absolutely unacceptable".

On Monday, protesters broke open the makeshift security barriers raised by the city police and installed two Khalistani flags inside the Indian Consulate premises. Two officers quickly removed them. A short while after, a group of angry protesters entered the premises and started hitting the door and windows with iron rods.

National Security Council Coordinator for strategic communications John Kirby spoke to the media and said the White House strongly condemns the incident. He asserted that vandalism is unacceptable. The State Department also issued a statement saying those responsible will be held accountable.

"The State Department's diplomatic security service is working with local authorities. I can't speak for the San Francisco police, but I can say that the diplomatic security service is working with local authorities to properly investigate and obviously, the State Department is going to be working from an infrastructure perspective to repair the damage, but it's unacceptable," said Kirby.

"The US condemns the attack on Sunday against the Indian Consulate in San Francisco. Violence against diplomatic facilities within the US is a punishable crime. It is our priority to defend the security and safety of these facilities and the diplomats who work within them, said the statement by the South and Central Asia Bureau of the State Department.

The US-India Strategic Partnership Forum issued a separate statement that said the attack on the Indian mission is strongly condemned. "The United States and India are vibrant democracies and understand that the right to assemble peacefully and protest is sacrosanct. However, violence and vandalism will not be condoned or tolerated. Diplomats and consular staff deserve the same right to a secure and peaceful work environment, free from external harm and threats."

"We stand by Dr. TV Nagendra Prasad, the honourable Consul General of India in San Francisco, and his staff," said USISPF while urging local authorities to take action against those guilty of aiding and abetting as well.

India also took action by blocking pro-Khalistan Twitter accounts. When someone tries to access these Twitter accounts from India, it says they have been withheld due to a legal demand. The blocked account holders include Canada's New Democratic Party leader Jagmeet Singh, Canadian poet Rupi Kaur, the voluntary organisation United Sikhs, and Canada-based activist Gurdeep Singh Sahota. Jagmeet Singh is known for making anti-India comments.

India also condemned the lack of security response to the vandalisation at the Indian High Commission in London. Foreign Secretary Vinay Mohan Kwatra said that India has asked for an explanation from the UK Deputy High Commissioner and called for the arrest of culprits. The Ministry of External Affairs reminded the UK official that the UK government has the basic obligation under the Vienna Convention to provide security to Indian diplomats.

There has been a rise in attacks by Khalistani elements in foreign countries like Canada, Australia, the UK, and the US.