Plea to airlift Naveen’s body from Ukraine by private plane went unheeded: Siddaramaiah

Leader of Opposition in Assembly Siddaramaiah on Wednesday alleged that the Union government had not responded to the plea by Prakash Koliwad son of former Speaker K B Koliwad seeking permission to bring back the mortal remains of Naveen Gyanagoudar, who was killed in a shelling by Russian forces in Ukraine, in a private plane.

Speaking to reporters after visiting Naveen’s parents at Chalageri in Ranebennur taluk on Wednesday, Siddaramaiah said, “Prakash Koliwad had written to the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) seeking its permission to bring back the body of Naveen in a chartered flight. But the MEA has not responded to its plea. This only shows the Centre’s apathy...”

“I will pressure the External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and the Union government to take necessary steps to bring back the mortal remains of Naveen,” he said.

“The Union government should have evacuated all Indians from Ukraine before Russian troops entered the eastern European nation. Naveen could have been saved had the Centre acted swiftly and sensibly,” he said.

Meanwhile, 57 students from the state returned home from war-torn Ukraine in the last two days. So far, 621 students from Karnataka, who were pursuing MBBS course in various Ukrainian colleges and varsities, have been evacuated to safety, said Manoj Rajan, the nodal officer to coordinate evacuations from Ukraine.

He added that 16 more students from the state stuck in the war-ravaged country needed to be evacuated while the whereabouts of 22 students is not known.

Parameshwara assures assistance

Two Koratagere students, who were pursuing MBBS in Ukraine, returned home on Wednesday. Taukeer Mohammad and Syed Nouman recounting the horrors of war, said they spent the 10 dreadful days in a bunker before risking their lives to walk 10 km in the war zone to reach Slovakia.

Former minister and Koratagere MLA G Parameshwara visited their houses and enquired about their well-being.

He assured the students of providing them necessary help in pursuing their medical education at his family-run Siddhartha Medical college in Tumakuru.

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