Srinagar, Jan 15 (KNO): As the situation in Iran grows increasingly tense, anxious parents of Kashmiri students stranded there gathered outside the office of the District Commissioner (DC) Srinagar on Thursday, appealing for urgent government intervention to ensure their children’s safety and evacuation.
Families said they have lost contact with their wards for several days due to a communication blackout and disruption in online banking services.
“We are completely cut off,” Abdul Hameed, a resident of Parimpora, whose son is studying medicine in Tehran, told the news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO).
He said neither calls go through nor are they able to send money. "The embassy has advised them to leave, but how can they do that without assistance? Their safety, security and even their studies are at stake now," Hameed said.
Another worried parent, Mohammad Sulaiman, echoed similar fears. “We can’t even transfer money to our children. The banks are down, and students are frightened. We appeal to the government to please act now as it did during the crises in June and July,” said.
Parents said they had gone to meet the DC Srinagar but to no avail. “We were told to leave our representation in the office. No one met us. We just want assurance that our children will be brought back safely,” one parent said, fighting back tears.
The protest came hours after Chief Minister Omar Abdullah said he had spoken to External Affairs Minister Dr S. Jaishankar regarding the safety of students and residents from Jammu and Kashmir currently in Iran, assuring that the situation was being closely monitored.
Meanwhile, sources aware of the developments told KNO that the first evacuation flight from Tehran to Delhi is scheduled for Friday morning. Kashmiri students have reportedly been registered, and the first batch has been asked to be ready by 8:00 AM.
“Parents are requested not to worry,” the source said, adding that the government is coordinating to ensure the safe return of all students.
Notably, with communication lines down but hope slowly returning, parents in Kashmir wait anxiously, with their prayers fixed on the skies that will soon bring their children home—(KNO)