Bengaluru/Balehonnuru, March 01: Condemning the attack of US-Israel on an Iran school which killed over 70 children, Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar today said the ongoing conflict in Middle East is not the right way to go about.
Speaking to reporters at his Sadashivanagar residence and later at Balehonnuru, he said, “The war in Middle East is not right. Why attack school children who are at no fault? This is condemnable. It is time to rescue Indians stuck in Dubai and other parts of Middle East.”
Asked about rescuing Kannadigas in Saudi nd Dubai, he said, “I appeal to the Centre to rescue Kannadigas, Keralites and Indians from other states. We will do whatever is needed to protect the interests of our people. I condemn all deaths like this.”
“Our MLAs A C Srinivasa Reddy, Bharat Reddy, his family and MLC Bhoje Gowda are stranded in Dubai. There are a lot of Indian citizens also stuck there. Moreover, there are a lot of Indians are working in Middle East and many Indian educational institutions are located there,” he added.
“Kannada organisations in Middle East must give confidence to the people stranded there. The people who do business with us from Dubai are worried,” he added.
Asked if anyone from Bengaluru is stranded, he said, “The CM and I have given instructions to the Commissioner about this.”
Asked if there was any plan to open helplines, he said, “State and Centre can’t have separate helplines. Ministry of External Affairs must open the helpline.”
Let humanity win
“We need peace in the world. I pray for no casualties. Hope humanity triumphs. Gangadhar Ajjaiah has said that world peace is possible only by universal humanity. The US must stop the war. This war can negatively impact India,” he noted.
“It is not about Kannadigas or others, we are all Indians. Saudi Arabia runs on Indians. Every other family from Mangaluru or Kerala work in Middle East. More than 70 school children are dead in the US-Israel attacks. There were two main transit hubs – Middle East and Singapore- for Indians to travel abroad,” he added.
