Despite repeated urgings, no safe corridor for students stranded in Sumy: India tells UNSC
United Nations(PTI): India, which has managed to safely bring back over 20,000 of its nationals from Ukraine amid the ongoing war, said it is deeply concerned that despite its repeated urgings to both Russia and Ukraine, the safe corridor for Indian students stranded in eastern Ukrainian city of Sumy did not materialise.
India has been consistent in calling for an immediate end to all hostilities, India's Permanent Representative to the UN Ambassador T S Tirumurti told the UN Security Council meeting Monday on the humanitarian situation in Ukraine.
He said India has reiterated its urgent demand for safe and uninterrupted passage for all innocent civilians, including Indian nationals remaining in Ukraine.
We are deeply concerned that despite our repeated urgings to both sides, the safe corridor for our students stranded in Sumy did not materialize, Tirumurti said.
Tirumurti said India has managed to facilitate the safe return of over 20,000 Indians from Ukraine.
We have also assisted nationals from other countries, who approached us, in their return to their respective countries. And we will remain open to doing so in the coming days.
The Indian envoy told the Council that more than 80 evacuation flights have been crisscrossing the skies to bring the Indian nationals home. We are appreciative of the assistance rendered by the authorities of Ukraine and its neighbouring countries in facilitating their return.
Around 700 Indian students are stranded in Sumy, which has been witnessing intense fighting between Russian and Ukrainian troops for days now.
India has been making efforts to evacuate its citizens from the city but with little success due to heavy shelling and air strikes.
To evacuate its citizens from war-hit Ukraine, the Indian government has launched 'Operation Ganga' under which thousands of stranded people, mostly students, have been evacuated from nations bordering Ukraine's western frontiers. However, the evacuation from the eastern part remains a challenge.
Tirumurti underscored it is important that humanitarian action is always guided by the principles of humanitarian assistance - humanity, neutrality, impartiality and independence. These should not be politicised, he said.
Russia's Permanent Representative to the UN Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia had told the UN Security Council last week that Ukraine nationals are keeping over 3700 Indian citizens by force in Kharkiv and Sumy and buses from Russia are ready and waiting at crossing points to go to these Ukrainian cities to evacuate Indian students and other foreign nationals.
Terrorists do not let civilians leave cities. This impacts not only Ukrainians, but foreigners as well.
"The number of foreign citizens whom Ukrainian nationals are keeping by force is shocking. Kharkov 3189 nationals of India, up to 2700 nationals of Vietnam, 202 nationals of China. Sumy 576 nationals of India, 101 nationals of Ghana, 121 national of China, Nebenzia had said.
UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres tweeted on Sunday that it is absolutely essential to establish a pause in the fighting in Ukraine to allow for the safe passage of civilians from Mariupol, Kharkiv and Sumy, as well as all other places caught in conflict, and to ensure life-saving humanitarian supplies can move in for those who remain.
In his phone conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin Monday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi conveyed his deep concern for the safety and security of the Indian students still remaining in Sumy.
President Putin briefed Prime Minister about the ongoing measures related to humanitarian corridors for facilitating evacuation of civilians including Indian students, an official release issued in New Delhi said.
Modi also suggested that a direct conversation between Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky may greatly assist the ongoing peace efforts.
In his conversation with Zelensky, Modi expressed deep concern about the ongoing conflict and resultant humanitarian crisis. Modi thanked Ukrainian authorities for their facilitation in evacuating more than 20000 Indian citizens from Ukraine.
Modi emphasized the need for quick and safe evacuation of students stranded in Ukraine.
Tirumurti told the Council that in his conversations with the leadership of both sides, Modi reiterated our call for immediate ceasefire and the need for both parties to return to the path of dialogue and diplomacy.
Tirumurti said numerous lives have been lost so far due to the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, including a young Indian student.
India mourns his death and we convey our deepest condolences to his family, just as we mourn the loss of each and every civilian life in the conflict.
In the first Indian casualty in the war in Ukraine, 21 year old fourth-year medical student at the Kharkiv National Medical University Naveen Shekarappa Gyanagoudar from Karnataka was killed in shelling in Kharkiv city.
Tirumurti said the worsening situation in Ukraine and ensuing humanitarian crisis deserves our immediate and urgent attention .
As per the UN's own estimate, 1.5 million refugees have sought shelter in neighbouring countries of Ukraine over the last 11 days, he said.
This has led to a pressing humanitarian crisis that needs to be addressed expeditiously, he added.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
West Bengal: BJP holds protest against Sandeshkhali videos, TMC worker 'heckled'
Sandeshkhali (WB), May 12: BJP workers on Sunday demonstrated against the circulation of purported videos "to malign the image" of saffron party leaders in West Bengal's Sandeshkhali, and allegedly heckled the local TMC legislator for spreading "misinformation" over complaints of sexual abuse, lodged by women in the area.
They also beat up a local TMC activist in Sandeshkhali in North 24 Parganas district for allegedly being involved in "disseminating false information about atrocities on women" in the area.
Led by BJP's Basirhat Lok Sabha constituency candidate Rekha Patra, the protestors demonstrated in front of Sandeshkhali Police station, also demanding the release of a party activist arrested in a "false dacoity" case.
Patra accused police of "slapping trumped-up charges on BJP activists" in Sandeshkhali, while "turning a blind eye to the filming and circulation of fake videos" implicating her party leaders and women in the area.
A section of women protestors allegedly dragged the local TMC activist from a house and beat him up in the presence of the party's Sandeshkhali MLA Sukumar Mahata who was there for campaigning, a leader of the ruling party claimed.
As Mahata tried to intervene he was allegedly shoved by the protestors, he said.
Mahata blamed Patra and her supporters for "orchestrating" the attack on the local TMC activist, stating that the "BJP's gameplan to defame Bengal is clear before the people of the state".
"The BJP broke all precedents and tried to disrupt our campaign but we did not retaliate," he said.
A team of police personnel rushed to the spot and managed to rescue the TMC activist.
The riverine Sandeshkhali area — situated on the borders of the Sundarbans, about 100 kilometres from Kolkata — had been on the boil in February with protests over allegations of sexual abuse and land grab against now arrested TMC leader Shajahan Sheikh and his supporters.
In a purported video that surfaced from Sandeshkhali on Saturday night, a local BJP leader was heard saying that over 70 women had received Rs 2,000 each for taking part in protests against local TMC satrap Sheikh and his aides who were accused of sexual assault and land grab.
In the video, lasting over 45 minutes, a man resembling BJP's Sandeshkhali mandal president Gangadhar Kayal told this to the questioner.
It was Kayal who had earlier said in another purported clip, the first in a series in the past week, that the rape allegations were “staged”.
PTI did not independently verify the authenticity of the videos.
One of the women, who demonstrated outside the police station, denied the allegation, and said, "Were we protesting in February for money? The TMC are making false claims".
Patra, the BJP candidate for the Basirhat Lok Sabha seat, alleged that a saffron party worker in the area was "arrested on a false dacoity charge but many TMC activists, allegedly involved in atrocities on women, are roaming around freely".
Branding the BJP as a "violent" party, TMC spokesperson and state minister Shashi Panja said, "TMC poll campaigners are being attacked by BJP candidate from Basirhat, Rekha Patra, and her followers in Sandeshkhali after the conspiracy hatched by the BJP has come to light."
The incident of attack on the TMC activist and the party MLA took place on the day of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to West Bengal and "possibly under his instruction", the state minister alleged.
BJP candidate for Baranagar assembly bypoll and party's spokesperson Sajal Ghosh said the incident reflected the simmering anger of people of Sandeshkhali against TMC.
"The assault on the TMC activist and manhandling of the local MLA is just a pointer. More such incidents may follow if the TMC does not stop bringing disgrace to the mothers and sisters of Sandeshkhali by releasing such fake videos," he said.
TMC's "diabolical gameplan" to deflect attention from the atrocities on women by its leaders in the area will backfire, Ghosh told reporters.
Patra, before being fielded by BJP, was at the forefront of the series of agitation by women in Sandeshkhali in February and March.
