Excelsior Correspondent
SRINAGAR, Mar 17: The J&K Students Association (JKSA) today urged External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar to intervene urgently to facilitate the evacuation of around 200 Indian students stranded near the Azerbaijan-Iran border amid tensions in the region.
In a statement issued here, the Association said the students, many of them from Kashmir, had travelled from different parts of Iran to the Azerbaijan border in hopes of crossing over for their onward journey to India.
However, JKSA said, Azerbaijani authorities have reportedly closed the border and are neither allowing entry nor issuing transit permits, leaving the students stranded in distressing conditions.
JKSA National Convenor Nasir Khuehami said the students had earlier been advised to book flight tickets and submit their PNR details, with assurances that they would be escorted to the border and allowed to cross in batches.
Acting on these instructions, several students booked tickets for March 18, 19 and 21, he said.
“Despite having valid bookings, the students are now stuck at the border as permissions have not been granted,” Khuehami said.
He added that the uncertainty has caused significant anxiety, particularly given the high cost of tickets already purchased.
Khuehami said that while some students were able to leave via the Armenia border when it briefly opened, many others remain stranded at the Azerbaijan border after being denied entry.
According to the Association, the stranded students are facing severe hardships, with several reporting illness, infections, and depletion of financial resources.
JKSA stressed that swift diplomatic intervention and coordinated evacuation efforts are crucial to prevent further deterioration of the situation and to ensure the safe return of all affected students.
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