A purported video of Indian students being manhandled and assaulted by Ukrainian border guards has gone viral. The video shows female students being pushed and shoved by a border in uniform. The personnel in the video can also be seen firing shots in the air. The video is allegedly from one of the border crossings between Ukraine and Poland through which Indian nationals are fleeing war-torn Ukraine.
There have been multiple reports of Ukrainian border guards harassing Indian citizens at border checkpoints as they attempt to flee Ukraine and enter neighbouring Romania, Poland, Hungary, Moldova and Slovakia. The Indian government has initiated ‘Operation Ganga’ to airlift Indians stranded in Ukraine via these countries.
Sharing the viral video on Twitter, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi wrote, “My heart goes out to the Indian students suffering such violence and their family watching these videos. No parent should go through this.” He further said that the Centre must urgently share the detailed evacuation plan with Indian citizens stranded in Ukraine as well as their families. His tweet read, “GOI must urgently share the detailed evacuation plan with those stranded as well as their families. We can’t abandon our own people.”
Several Indian netizens have accused Ukrainian authorities of using force on Indian students as a retaliatory measure for India abstaining from the Security Council resolution tabled against Russia in the UN.
On Tuesday, PM Modi deputed four Union Ministers to oversee rescue efforts being undertaken as part of ‘Operation Ganga’ to bring back Indian citizens from Ukraine. The ministers will camp in the neighbouring countries of Ukraine from where repatriation flights are taking off.
