‘Declaring Indians Missing in Iraq Dead a Crime’: Sushma Swaraj

Sushma Swaraj said that Iraq has never said that the 39 missing Indians are dead. 

(Photo: PTI)

Talking about the 39 missing Indians in Iraq, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj on Wednesday said that she has not misled anyone.

Making a forceful statement in the Lok Sabha, Swaraj said the government will continue its efforts to trace the Indians till it gets evidence that they were dead.

“I may not have evidence if the Indians missing in Mosul are alive, but I don’t have evidence that proves they are dead either. We have one person saying that the missing Indians have been killed while six other sources say that they are not dead,” she said.

"This file will not close till there is proof that the 39 Indians were dead. I will not commit the sin of declaring them dead without any evidence," Swaraj said, two days after holding talks with the Iraqi foreign minister on the issue.

"What benefit will my government get by misleading the people on the issue," she said.

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“Anyone who feels convinced that the missing Indians are dead can go ahead and tell the families of the construction workers. But if tomorrow we discover that the person is alive, only the person who talked to the family will be responsible for it,” she said.

Swaraj said that she didn’t have proper reason to believe Harjeet Masih and added, “I need permission from Lok Sabha that I can continue search operations based on Harjeet’s (the Indian who returned home from Iraq) statements”.

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