Canada has withdrawn 41 diplomats and their families from India, amid a dispute over the killing of a Sikh leader on Canadian soil. Ottawa has alleged that New Delhi was involved in the fatal shooting in June.

Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Joly said in a statement on Thursday that India had conveyed its plan to remove the immunities for all but 21 Canadian diplomats and dependents in New Delhi by Friday.

Joly said this meant 41 diplomats and their dependents had to be called back home, given the security implications of India's actions. She said Canada's consular activities in the country would have to be scaled down.

Joly said, "A unilateral revocation of diplomatic privileges and immunities is contrary to international law," and that "this action taken by India is completely unreasonable and escalatory."

However, the foreign minister said the Canadian government will "continue to respect diplomatic norms and not reciprocate this action."

Ties between the two countries have been deteriorating since Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau alleged last month that the Indian government was involved in the killing of the Sikh leader.

The religious leader was reportedly a supporter of the Sikh independence movement in India. Canada is home to nearly 800,000 Sikh citizens, whose community is said to wield political clout.