Diplomatic dispute bad for business, says GTA firm that helps people travel to India

A diplomatic dispute between Canada and India appears to be having a big impact on a Brampton business that helps people who travel back and forth between the two countries.

Apna Bharat Passport and Visa Service, based in Brampton, has seen a substantial drop in business this week, according to immigration consultant Money Behl and business founder Jasleen Raheja. The business, which caters to clients almost exclusively from India, provides passport and visa assistance.

Behl and Raheja, husband and wife, said they spent much of Tuesday fielding calls from concerned clients who have bought tickets to go to India for the religious festival Diwali on Nov. 1.

Normally, the business processes around 300 applications a month for Indian visas, they said. 

"My business is down by 80 per cent and I'm not even joking about it," Behl, an immigration consultant, told CBC Toronto on Tuesday.

"Everybody is suffering with this," he said.

On Monday, Canada expelled six Indian diplomats from India as the RCMP took the step of warning the public about safety threats linked to Indian government officials. India swiftly retaliated by ordering six Canadian diplomats to leave the country within a week.

RCMP Commissioner Michael Duheme said investigations revealed that Indian diplomats and consular officials based in Canada leveraged their official positions to engage in clandestine activities, including collecting information for India's government, either directly or through proxies.

Behl said he thinks the relationship between Canada and India has hit "rock bottom" and he is telling families who hope to travel to India to "hold tight" as he and his wife try to get more information from the Indian consulate. He said he has had no response from officials yet.

"They haven't banned or stopped anything as of now, so we're telling them to hold off for now, and hold onto their tickets, if they can. Give us a couple more days so that we can get the best information for them and get back to them."

Some people are concerned about getting approval for temporary travel visas, while others are concerned their visas may be cancelled altogether. Security concerns may make processing times longer, he added.

Raheja said a lot of people are being affected by the diplomatic dispute. 

"As you know, Diwali is approaching, and a lot of people actually go to India at this time. I would say 50 per cent of people would go to India at this time because of the holidays," she said.

The business also deals with a number of clients who are looking to come to Canada from India and who are concerned about their Canadian passport applications, she said.