New Delhi, Aug 19 (Agency) Indian government is committed to bringing back all Indians stuck in Afghanistan, BJP Spokesperson Gaurav Bhatia said on Thursday. In reply to a question at a press conference of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Bhatia said all Indians will be evacuated. “In the leadership of Narendra Modi, our priority is the welfare of the people. The Union government is keeping an eye on the situation. We will not sit in peace till all Indians are evacuated safely,” Bhatia said. The comment comes amid Opposition attacks on the government accusing it of silence on the Afghanistan issue.
Bhatia said all should be aware of their responsibilities, and stand with the government at a time like this, and added: “there can be people who may not want our citizens to return safely”. India evacuated around 129 Indian and Afghan nationals through an Air India flight on Sunday night, after the Taliban entered Kabul. Later, as commercial aircraft were disallowed at the Kabul airport, two C-17 aircraft of the Indian Air Force evacuated around 40, and 140 people in two batches, including Indian Ambassador to Afghanistan Rudrendra Tandon. While the government has not given any official numbers on how many Indians continue to be stuck in Afghanistan, in a written reply to Rajya Sabha on August 5, Minister of State for External Affairs V Muraleedharan had said there are approximately 1500 Indian nationals in Afghanistan, including the Government of India officials.