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“Jo mar chuke hai woh waapis nahi aa sakte (those who have died cannot come back),” asserts Harjit Masih, the lone Indian out of 40, who managed to return from ISIS-held Mosul in 2014.
“If the government says they are alive and will come back home, I am happy. I will be happy if they come back and prove that I’m a liar. I know what I saw... but I’m not going to keep repeating myself if nobody wants to believe me,” Masih tells The Quint in a telephonic conversation.
Upon his return to his native Punjab, Masih claimed that he had witnessed his 39 Indian companions, mostly fellow Punjabis, being shot dead by ISIS. He claimed he survived the abduction only because he pretended to be dead and lay underneath dead bodies for hours. The government, however, rubbished his claims. External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj had said in May 2015:
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On Sunday, Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi arrived in Mosul to congratulate Iraq’s armed forces on fully reclaiming the city from ISIS. Just as this declaration was made, family members of the remaining 39 began making frantic calls to the MEA to find out more.
Swaraj had met the waiting families earlier this year in June, and had informed them that a source of the Indian government in Iraq had ascertained the “exact location” of the men in Mosul. Leaning on this hope, the families’ calls to the MEA have become even more desperate.
Gurpinder Kaur, sister of Manjinder Singh, told The Quint that she had called the MEA on Monday morning, but has heard no news of her brother.
All Kaur knows is that General VK Singh has been dispatched to Iraq to coordinate with the government there.
When asked of Masih’s claims, Kaur is quick to respond:
The Ministry of External Affairs has said in a statement that the Iraqi authorities have assured India of all cooperation in locating the 39 hostages.
Meanwhile, Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh called Swaraj personally and asked for the government to facilitate the men’s return.
Swaraj reportedly told the Captain that officials of national carrier Air India have also been asked to facilitate the return, and that her ministry is doing everything in its power to trace the Indians, who were last said to be at a church in Mosul.
The families, in the meantime, wait with bated breath, ready to march to Delhi if they don’t hear anything soon.
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