Telugu Desam Party president N. Chandrababu Naidu has appealed to External Affairs Minister S.M. Krishna to help the 105 Indian students stranded in Bishkek, the capital of strife-torn Kyrgyzstan, return to the country at the government's cost.
In a letter sent to Mr. Krishna and Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister K. Rosaiah, the TDP president said relatives of the students had represented that they had lost their passports, ATM cards and other valuables. But the Indian Embassy, which had helped them move from violence-hit cities to the capital, was insisting that they pay for their tickets to India or surrender their passports and get them back after payment on their return. It was not proper to insist on payment as they were in a pathetic condition with no access to food and basic facilities for the last six days.
Mr. Naidu pointed out that even smaller countries such as Pakistan had arranged special flights to help their citizens and wondered why India could not do the same, treating it as a special case.
