- Saturday, March 01, 2025
By: Shubham Ghosh
Indian external affairs minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar on Tuesday (18) lashed out at Siddaramaiah, a leader of the opposition Indian National Congress from the poll-bound southern state of Karnataka, over his claims over 31 tribals from the state who are stuck in Sudan where fierce clashes are currently going on between the military and Rapid Support Forces paramilitary group.
Siddaramaiah, a former chief minister of Karnataka, accused the Narendra Modi government in a series of tweets of remaining inactive in bringing back the people of the southern state’s Hakki Pikki tribe who have remained stranded.
“The Hakki Pikkis in Sudan were left stranded without food for the past few days and the government has not yet initiated action to bring them back,” he said.
Simply appalled at your tweet! There are lives at stake; don’t do politics.
Since the fighting started on April 14th, the Embassy of India in Khartoum has been continuously in touch with most Indian Nationals and PIOs in Sudan. https://t.co/MawnIwStQp
— Dr. S. Jaishankar (@DrSJaishankar) April 18, 2023
Their details and locations cannot be made public for security reasons. Their movement is constrained by fierce fighting that is ongoing.
— Dr. S. Jaishankar (@DrSJaishankar) April 18, 2023
Jaishankar hit back at the Congress leader’s allegation saying he was politicising the situation and called it “grossly irresponsible”.
“It is grossly irresponsible of you to politicize their situation. No electoral goal justifies endangering Indians abroad,” Jaishankar tweeted, adding in another, “Simply appalled at your tweet! There are lives at stake; don’t do politics.”
The diplomat also posted a thread detailing the Indian government’s efforts in Sudan where around 4,000 Indians live. One Indian national was killed by a stray bullet on Saturday (15) after the clashes started.
“Their details and locations cannot be made public for security reasons. Their movement is constrained by fierce fighting that is ongoing,” he said, adding, “Plans regarding them have to take into account a very complicated security scenario. The Embassy is in constant touch with the Ministry in that regard.”
The Indian embassy in Khartoum has been repeatedly cautioning Indian nationals against venturing out of their houses.
On Monday, India’s ministry of external affairs set up a control room to provide information and assistance to Indians in Sudan.
Nearly 200 people have been killed in the violence while almost 2,000 were injured.
