Fourty-one Canadian diplomats have recently left India due to a rift over the murder of a Sikh separatist leader in Canada.

A few weeks ago, India threatened to remove the immunity of dozens of its diplomats if they did not withdraw from Canada.

The threat was called a “violation of international law” by Canadian officials.

Canada accused India of being behind the 18 June killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, resulting in tense relations.

The allegations have been denied by India, calling them “absurd”.

Melanie Joly, Canada’s foreign minister, confirmed on Thursday that many of Canada’s diplomats in India have now left.

In her statement, she said India had announced it would “unilaterally remove immunity” for “all diplomats except 21” by 20 October.

According to Ms Joly, the remaining 21 diplomats are still in India, but a shortage of staff will restrict Canada’s services there.

Bangalore, Mumbai, and Chandigarh in-person operations will be paused as a result of the move, Ms Joly explained. There is no timeline for when those services will resume, according to officials.

The High Commission of Canada in Delhi will continue to offer services, and third-party application centers will remain open, officials said.

Marc Miller, Canadian immigration minister, said the reduction of staff will, at least in the short term, significantly increase processing times for immigration applications.

Indian citizens and international students looking to study in Canada will be primarily affected, officials said.

In 2022, Indians constituted the largest percentage of temporary and permanent residents in Canada.

The Indian government claims that Canada has many more diplomats in Delhi than it does in Ottawa, and has demanded parity ever since the dispute erupted between the two countries.