No Reports Of Indian Students Taken Hostage In Ukraine, Govt Clarifies

New Delhi: The Indian government on Thursday denied reports that Indian students were being held as “hostages” in Ukraine.

“We have not received reports of any hostage situation regarding any student. We have requested support of the Ukrainian authorities in arranging special trains for taking out students from Kharkiv and neighbouring areas to the western part of the country,” Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said.

Russia claimed on Wednesday night that Ukrainian forces had kept a group of Indian students “hostages” in Kharkiv and using them as “human shield”, according to earlier reports.

“The Russian side, in particular, is trying to organise an urgent evacuation of a group of Indian students from Kharkov (the Russian name of Kharkiv) through the humanitarian corridor along the shortest route to Russia,” it said.

“At the same time, according to the latest information, these students are actually taken hostage by the Ukrainian security forces, who use them as a human shield and in every possible way prevent them from leaving for Russian territory. Responsibility in this case lies entirely with the Kiev authorities,” it said.

At a briefing in Moscow, a Russian Defence Ministry spokesperson too said, “According to our information, Ukrainian authorities are forcibly keeping a large group of Indian students in Kharkiv who wish to leave Ukrainian territory and go to Belgorod.”

Earlier, Indian girl students were given safe passage to Ukraine’s western border by train — a 20-hour journey — with the help of Russians, government sources told NDTV.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke to Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday night and discussed the “safe evacuation of Indian nationals from conflict areas”.