Ukraine crisis: Indian student killed in shelling, New Delhi urges safe passage for 12,000 stranded nationals
- The victim, named as Naveen Shekharappa Gyanagoudar, was out shopping for groceries when he was hit, according to his friends
- India has called on Russian and Ukrainian ambassadors to ‘reiterate our demand for urgent safe passage for Indian nationals’ still in Ukraine
An Indian student was killed on Tuesday in shelling in Ukraine, New Delhi said, as it urged Moscow and Kyiv to secure safe passage for around 12,000 of its stranded nationals.
“With profound sorrow we confirm that an Indian student lost his life in shelling in Kharkiv this morning,” Indian foreign ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said on Twitter.
He added that the foreign secretary – the ministry’s top civil servant – was “calling in the Russian and Ukrainian ambassadors to reiterate our demand for urgent safe passage for Indian nationals who are still in Kharkiv and cities in other conflict zones”.
On Tuesday, the central square of the city near the Russian border was shelled by advancing forces who hit the building of the local administration, regional governor Oleg Sinegubov said.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky condemned the shelling as a “war crime”, adding in a video statement: “This is state terrorism on the part of Russia.”