“There Is No Such Memo, Report Fake And Fabricated”: India On The Intercept’s ‘Secret Memo’ Report
Denying the existence of an External Affairs Ministry “secret memo” that allegedly called on Indian consular officials operating in the U.S. and Canada to work in cooperation with India’s Research and Analysis Wing, the National Investigation Agency, and the Intelligence Bureau, an Indian official asserted that “such reports are fake and completely fabricated”. Official Spokesperson of the External Affairs ministry Arindam Bagchi added that “There is no such memo”.
This is, according to the official, “part of a sustained disinformation campaign against India”.
Mr Bagchi ascertained The Intercept, the media outlet that published the content of the alleged ‘secret memo’, “is known for propagating fake narratives peddled by Pakistani intelligence. The posts of the authors confirm this linkage”.
He also said those who amplify such fake news only do so at the cost of their own credibility.
The Intercept, an American online news media house, launched in 2014 with the support of Pierre Omidyar, eBay founder and philanthropist, has reported on Sunday morning that the Indian establishment instructed its consulates in North America to launch a “sophisticated crackdown scheme” against Sikh diaspora organizations in Western countries, according to a secret memorandum issued in April 2023 by India’s Ministry of External Affairs.
According to The Intercept report, “the document instructs officials at its consulates to cooperate with Indian intelligence agencies to confront the groups Sikhs for Justice, Babbar Khalsa International, Sikh Youth of America, Sikh Coordination Committee East Coast, World Sikh Parliament, and Shiromani Akali Dal Amritsar America. It suggests that Nijjar and several other “suspects” are affiliated with one of these groups, Babbar Khalsa International.”
The report alleges that the killing of Canadian citizen and Khalistani separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar and the foiled murder attempt against Sikhs for Justice general counsel Gurpatwant Singh Pannun to the memo.
Our response to media queries on reports of MEA "secret memo" in April 2023:https://t.co/LcHTl5HUpf pic.twitter.com/7ilEyqkVDX
— Arindam Bagchi (@MEAIndia) December 10, 2023
