VK Singh completes most difficult task, brings mortal remains of 38 Indians killed in Iraq: Nation mourns

Amritsar, March 2: Taking up a most difficult task, State External Affairs Minister VK Singh has brought the mortal remains of the 38 Indians who were killed by ISIS in Mosul. As soon as the mortal remains of 38 Indians reached Amritsar, along with the families the whole nation is witnessing pain and sorrow.

 

The mortal remains of 38 Indians was brought by Indian Air Force C17 aircraft. Notably, Gen VK Singh had left for Iraq on April 1 to bring back the mortal remains of the 38 Indians who were killed by ISIS in Mosul. 

After reaching Amritsar, VK Singh addressed the media and announced a Rs five lakh ex-gratia compensation for the family members of those who lost their lives. He also announced job for one member of the next of kin of those killed according to their qualifications.

Requesting the relatives to keep patience, the Minister said, the caskets in which mortal remains have been should not be opened as the government is investigating to find out whether there is a presence of any toxic substances.

Briefing to media, Gen VK Singh said that he undertook four trips to Iraq for this purpose. The Minister also added that the government got in touch with the owner of the company where the deceased worked.

Earlier, in the day, Gen VK Singh shared a video on Twitter in which he is seen carrying the mortal remains of 38 Indians into an aircraft. Twenty-seven persons from Punjab and four from Bihar were among the 39 killed. General Singh condemned terrorism in all its forms and manifestations and expressed the government's stance in fighting the menace. The Minister of State for External Affairs described Islamic State as a very cruel terrorist organization.

BACKGROUND:

External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj informed Parliament on 20 March that all 39 Indian construction workers kidnapped in 2014 from Mosul were killed. ''Out of the 40, who were kidnapped, one person managed to escape, while others were confirmed dead after DNA samples of their relatives matched from the bodies exhumed from a mound, '' EAM Swaraj said in Rajya Sabha.

Giving the details in the Upper House, Swaraj said, ''Mortal remains were sent to Baghdad. For verification of bodies, the DNA samples of their relatives were sent there, four state governments - Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, West Bengal and Bihar - were involved in this.''

Sushma added that a deep penetration radar confirmed that all Indians were dead after all bodies were exhumed. Commending Minister of State VK Singh, for supervising the job in challenging circumstances Minister Sushma said, "It was a most difficult task to get the proof. Such a barbaric terror organization...there were mass graves. It was a pile of bodies. To track down the bodies of our people and to take them to Baghdad for DNA tests was a huge task."

However, in July 2017, Swaraj had firmly said in the Parliament that she would not declare the 39 Indians dead without concrete proof or evidence. "It is a sin to declare a person dead without concrete evidence. I will not do this sin," she said in a statement in the Lok Sabha in 2017.

The group of Indian labourers, mostly from Punjab, was taken hostage by ISIS when it overran Iraq's second largest city Mosul in 2014. The workers were trying to leave Mosul when they were intercepted and taken hostage by the ISIS fighters. India had asked Iraq for help in locating the missing Indians after Iraqi forces recaptured Mosul from the Islamic State. General VK Singh also visited Iraq to find where about of 39 Indians.