‘Australian govt appreciates New Delhi’s assistance on Avani Dias visa issue’

NEW DELHI: Days after Australian journalist Avani Dias claimed she had to “abruptly” leave India as authorities purportedly said her visa wouldn’t be extended, people familiar with the matter said the Australian government appreciated the Indian side’s “assistance and cooperation” in the matter.
Dias, who worked in India as the South Asia bureau chief for the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) since January 2022, left the country last week.
The people cited above said in response to a query from HT that the Australian government had been working with the Indian government and ABC on a visa extension for a journalist from Australian national broadcaster and “appreciated the ministry of external affairs’s assistance and cooperation”.
“We were pleased that the Indian government granted a visa for the journalist, though by that time she had chosen to leave India,” one of the people cited above said.
ABC’s coverage of India, particularly during the election period, is important to Australians and the Australian government, the people added.
Earlier, an Indian government official who declined to be named described Dias’s contention that she wasn’t allowed to cover India’s general election and was compelled to leave the country as “not correct”. The official said Dias left India because she had to meet the timeline for another job offer in Australia.
“The reason for her leaving was not delay in issuance of visa but personal reasons,” the official added.
Dias contended in a post on X on Tuesday that her visa was extended for two months after the intervention of the Australian government “less than 24 hours before my flight”. She also contended that she was told her election accreditation “would not come through because of an Indian Ministry directive”.
The development occurred against the backdrop of the removal from YouTube India of Dias’s documentary on the killing last year of pro-Khalistan activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Canada. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau triggered a diplomatic row by saying there were “credible allegations of a potential link” between Indian government agents and the killing of Nijjar.
The Indian official said ABC’s documentary, titled “Sikhs, Murder and Spies” and aired on March 21, was shot without appropriate permissions. The BSF too had declined permission for the ABC team to shoot close to the Wagah land border because of security-related restrictions, the official said.