Jammu and Kashmir National Conference Member of Parliament from Anantnag (Retd) Justice Hasnain Masoodi on Sunday in a communication to Dr. Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, Minister for External Affairs demanded immediate evacuation of 450 Kashmiri students stranded in Bangladesh.
Masoodi while referring to the evacuation of Bangladeshi nationals stranded in India, and the reports that their return has started and all the stranded are being flown back by Biman Bangladesh Airline flights said, “If there is any impediment in evacuation and return of the Kashmiri students, it should be removed, there is no reason to any further prolong the agony of the stranded and their families.”
In response to earlier communication requesting return of the stranded students, lockdown in two countries was identified as the main hiccup and the External Affairs Ministry having now asked the states to facilitate the travel of stranded to the IGI Airport notwithstanding lockdown, this reason is no more available to delay the return.
Recalling his quick response to the demand for return of the stranded in Iran and humanitarian approach adopted by the Minister in facilitating evacuation of students and pilgrims from Iran and their return to India, Masoodi said, “Dr. S Jaishankar should show similar compassion and concern for the students stranded in Bangladesh.
GOI should make use of the flights scheduled to take the Bangladesh nationals from Delhi to Dhaka, for evacuation and airlifting of the stranded students to Srinagar. The initiative by Bangladesh Government to evacuate its nationals despite the facilities available to them in India, must remind all concerned that mere availability of necessities of life is not to make them insensitive to the mental agony and emotional distress faced by the stranded and their families and that the evacuation is required to be commenced forthwith.”
Masoodi while expressing relief over the evacuation of students stranded at Kota Rajasthan, though after inexplicable delay, has asked the administration to immediately commence such exercise for students stranded at Agra, Aligarh, Indore, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Chenai, Pune and other places. He has applauded the initiative taken by the district administration Shimla in facilitating return of labourers stranded at main town and asked the authorities to seek cooperation of the administration of other districts of Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana and Delhi to speed up the evacuation. He has demanded free back home travel of the stranded labourers as the present crisis has literally left the labourers without any resources to bear travel.
