India on Wednesday declared an official working at the Pakistani High Commission in New Delhi persona non grata for allegedly “engaging in activities inconsistent with his diplomatic role”.

India’s Ministry of External Affairs said in a statement that the official had been asked to leave the country within 24 hours. The ministry did not identify the official.

This is the second such expulsion in a week.

In diplomatic parlance, an official declared persona non-grata is deemed unwelcome by the host country.

Pakistan retaliated on Thursday by directing an official at the Indian High Commission in Islamabad to leave the country within 24 hours. This marked the second expulsion by Pakistan within a week.

The Indian external affairs ministry said on Wednesday that Saad Warraich, the chargé d’affaires of the Pakistani High Commission, was issued a démarche, or a diplomatic protest, and instructed to ensure that no Pakistani diplomat or official in India misused their privileges or status.

Following Pakistan’s downgrade of diplomatic ties with India in August 2019 over New Delhi’s decision to abrogate the special status of Jammu and Kashmir, both countries’ diplomatic missions have been led by chargés d’affaires instead of the high commissioners.

With the expulsion on Wednesday, the operational staff at the Pakistani High Commission has reduced to 28, The Indian Express reported.

On May 13, New Delhi had expelled an official of the Pakistani High Commission on similar grounds.

The expelled Pakistani officials were allegedly connected to people who were recently arrested in Punjab and Haryana including a travel vlogger, who have been accused of spying for Pakistani intelligence agencies, The Indian Express quoted unidentified government officials as saying.

On May 10, India and Pakistan reached an “understanding” to halt firing following a four-day conflict.

Tensions between New Delhi and Islamabad had escalated on May 7 when the Indian military carried out strikes – codenamed Operation Sindoor – on what it claimed were terrorist camps in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.

The strikes were in response to the terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam, which killed 26 persons on April 22.

The Pakistan Army retaliated to Indian strikes by repeatedly shelling Indian villages along the Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir. At least 22 Indian civilians and eight defence personnel were killed.

India and Pakistan have fired tit-for-tat diplomatic salvoes at each other following the terror attack, such as suspending the Indus Waters Treaty and bilateral trade, cancelling visas and expelling diplomats.

A day after the Pahalgam attack, India had declared Pakistan’s defence, military, naval and air advisers in New Delhi persona non grata and said it would withdraw its defence advisers from Islamabad.