9,000 Students Among 19,000 Indians Stuck In Bangladesh, Jaishankar Tells Lok Sabha

New Delhi: External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Tuesday told Lok Sabha that there are around 19,000 Indian nationals currently stuck in Bangladesh, out of which 9,000 are students.

Further, Jaishankar said that the central government is in constant touch with the Indian community in Bangladesh. He said that the bulk of the Indian students residing in the neighbouring country had returned home in July, when the unrest in Bangladesh took a violent turn.

“We are in close and continuous touch with the Indian community in Bangladesh through our diplomatic missions. There are an estimated 19,000 Indian nationals there of which about 9000 are students. The bulk of the students returned in July,” he said in the Parliament today.

The foreign minister also said that India is closely monitoring the the situation with regard to the minorities living in Bangladesh.

“We are also monitoring the situation with regard to the status of minorities. There are reports of initiatives by various groups and organisations to ensure their protection and well-being. Naturally, we will remain deeply concerned till law and order is restored,” the EAM said.

On former Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina coming to India, Jaishankar said that she had sought approval to arrive in the country at a very short notice. “On August 5, demonstrators converged in Dhaka despite the curfew. Our understanding is that after a meeting with leaders of the security establishment, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina apparently made the decision to resign. At very short notice, she requested approval to come for the moment to India. We simultaneously received a request for flight clearance from Bangladesh authorities. She arrived yesterday evening in Delhi,” he said.

On Monday, Sheikh Hasina fled Bangladesh and landed in the Hindon air base in Uttar Pradesh’s Ghaziabad amid violence and unrest in her country. The former prime minister met with NSA Ajit Doval and top military officials upon her arrival in India.

The Border Security Force (BSF) sounded a high alert on the Indo-Bangladesh border area, and conducted meeting with village heads and military officials in the locality to maintain law and order.