Family members of 16 Indian sailors detained by the Guinean Navy have appealed to the government for their safe return. Indian sailor He has been held hostage since August this year. Their families have urged the Indian government to make arrangements for the immediate release of the sailors.
Harshvardhan Savche, a resident of Vadodara, is among 16 Indian crew of the ship detained by the Navy of Equatorial Guinea, a country off the west coast of Africa.
According to Harshvardhan’s wife Sneha Savache, “His ship was captured by the Nigerian Navy due to some technical reasons while he was on his way to the port of Nigeria for loading. He has been held hostage for the last three months.” Harshvardhan’s wife also said that she had also sent a video of him in a hostage situation from the ship.
Harsh Vardhan’s family is concerned about everyone’s safety as the seized ship has been illegally taken to Nigeria where they will be arrested. Harsh Vardhan’s wife is pleading with the Indian government to release her husband and help him get back safely.
Earlier, in a video message shared on Wednesday, the chief officer of MT Veer Idun said they would be “forcefully taken away by arranging a tug boat”. The sailors have urged the Indian government to “rescue” them.
“We have received information that the ship will be illegally taken from here to Nigeria, the government here is arranging tug boats, it is an act of piracy. The ship has been banned from here by the flag state. Our flag state is the Marshall Islands. We have received instructions not to move from here. So we will be forcefully taken from here by arranging a tug boat. That’s why I got this information.”
“People of the ship, they are standing on the pier. They will come on board at any moment and the ship will be forcefully taken from here. We will not be able to send any more videos. This may be our last video. We don’t know when Army Will board the ship, what are they going to do?” The sailors carried placards “Save us” and urged the government to save them.
CPI(M) leader AA Rahim, in a letter to S Jaishankar for External Affairs, said that the crew of MT Veer Idun, comprising 16 Indian sailors, was being “reportedly illegally detained in Equatorial Guinea”.
In response to them, the Indian Mission in Equatorial Guinea said, “This Embassy and our High Commission in Abuja are working closely with the authorities of Equatorial Guinea and Nigeria for the early release of the crew members of MV Heroic Idun. All crew The members are safe and they have been shifted to the detention center on the ship.”
“Since their detention in mid-August, the mission has been in regular contact with crew members over the phone. We also have several consular access/visits. We are closely monitoring developments and are active We are actively engaged for speedy resolution of the issue,” it added.
(with ANI inputs)
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