Congress general secretary and UP in-charge Priyanka Gandhi Vadra attacked the Bharatiya Janata Party government over delay in extending support to students stuck amid the war between Russia and Ukraine for the last several days.
Recently, the video of Lucknow resident Garima Mishra trapped in Ukraine went viral on the internet. Garima is seen seeking help from the Union government in the video. While recording the video, the Lucknow student said that she was trapped in Kiev and there had been no help from the Indian Embassy and the staff there was not even picking up distress calls after assuring to help strapped Indians.
"There is an atmosphere of fear among the Indian students living in Ukraine and I appeal to the Union government to immediately evacuate the students and bring them back to India safely," Priyanka said on Monday.
The Congress leader made the appeal to the Centre, tweeting the video of the Lucknow girl student trapped in Ukraine.
Appealing to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, Priyanka tweeted, "The videos of Indian students emanating from Ukraine are very disturbing to the mind. For God's sake, do whatever it takes to bring these children back to India. The whole country is with these students and their families. You are requested that anyhow, the government should try to get them back safely."
Meanwhile, lambasting Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Congress national spokesperson Pawan Khera said that the prime minister did not take care of 250 Indian children (stuck in war-torn Ukraine) and was trying to become Vishwa Guru (world leader).
"Yesterday, I watched a video on social media. At least 1,173 people from Uttar Pradesh are stuck in war-ravaged Ukraine. Modiji said that among those, 250 are youths. The prime minister did not take care of his own children and is trying to become Vishwa Guru (world leader)," Khera said in Lucknow on Monday.
Meanwhile, the Union government has initiated 'Operation Ganga' to rescue Indian students trapped in Ukraine and so far, 1,156 Indians have been safely evacuated.
Besides, a Twitter handle named Op Ganga Helpline has also been created by the External Affairs Ministry. Prime Minister Narendra Modi also chaired an important meeting on the Ukraine crisis on Sunday.
Speaking to media persons at the UP Congress Committee headquarters in Lucknow, Khera also fired a volley of questions at Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, seeking the latter's reply. "I want to know from Yogi ji whether we shall forget scores of children who died at the Gorakhpur medical college. Human corpses were found floating in the Ganga river during the pandemic. When will the lanes of Bhairon temple and Mata Mandir be widened," he asked.
Reminding the Bharatiya Janata Party about the promises made to farmers, Khera said, "In 2022, the government had promised to farmers that their income would be doubled but not a single farmer's income was doubled. Now, stray animals have become a major problem in UP. Take training in governance from Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan."
On Yogi Adityanath's assurance to give jobs to youth, the Congress spokesman said, "Not a single industry was set up in Uttar Pradesh. On the other hand, prices of petrol, diesel and other commodities have gone through the roof."