Hundreds of Kashmiri students stranded in Iran are sending distress calls for help and seeking evacuation amid relentless bombings in the country by the US and Israel.
The families of the students and politicians in Kashmir have also urged the Centre to evacuate them without delay.
The Indian embassy in Tehran has issued an advisory asking Indian nationals in Iran not to approach any of the country’s land border points for outbound travel without coordinating with the mission.
The embassy said it would not be able to extend assistance once individuals have exited Iranian territory.
Former chief minister Mehbooba Mufti on Monday reached out to the Iranian embassy to press for the return of the students. She expressed her condolences over the killing of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and conveyed the message that Kashmiris stand with Iran.
A group of Kashmiri students who were shifted from Tehran to Qom by India’s embassy in Iran a few days ago said they were extremely worried as no follow-up had been taken for their return to India.
A student said in a video message that there had been four strikes in the past few days within 300 metres of their accommodation.
“We request the external affairs minister to evacuate us. We know he is capable of ensuring our evacuation. We don’t know what the issues are that are holding us back. We approached the embassy officials, but they said there was no official order for our evacuation. We don’t know what will happen to us in the coming hours,” he said.
Another student said stranded people from other countries, such as China, had been evacuated but Indians continued to be stuck in Iran.
Jammu and Kashmir Students Association convenor Nasir Khuehami said they met foreign secretary Vikram Misri on Sunday to plead for the safe return of the students.
“There are some 1,100 to 1,200 Kashmiri students studying in different parts of Iran. More than 500 Indian students, most of them Kashmiris, were shifted to places like Qom and Urmia, after which they were to be taken to adjoining countries for evacuation.
“But they remain stranded there. We are told that India will open two crossings with Azerbaijan and Armenia to move them to these places. But so far, we see a 50:50 chance of their immediate evacuation,” Khuehami told this newspaper.
A few Kashmiri students had left Iran following an advisory by the Indian government, but Khuehami said several others who had to take a mandatory competitive exam on March 5 could not exit the country.