A war of words broke out between Union External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and Congress leader Siddaramaiah on Tuesday, 18 April, over 31 tribals from Karnataka who have been stranded in conflict-torn Sudan.
Siddaramaiah took to Twitter to allege that the Centre did not make any efforts to bring back the tribals. "The Hakki Pikkis in Sudan were left stranded without food for the past few days and the government has not yet initiated action to bring them back," he said.
The claim was met be a retort from Jaishankar, who said, "It is grossly irresponsible of you to politicize their situation. No electoral goal justifies endangering Indians abroad."
Jaishankar further added that he was "simple appalled" at Siddaramaiah's tweet and asked him not to indulge in politics when there were lives at stake.
Siddaramaiah then hit back, saying that if the external affairs minister is busy, he could point out the person they could speak to in this matter.
"Since you are the External Affairs Minister, I have appealed you for help. If you are busy getting appalled please point us to the person who can help us bring our people back," the Congress leader said.
In his response, Jaishankar spoke of the government's efforts in Sudan, where two factions of the military have been battling it out to gain control of the country.
"Their details and locations cannot be made public for security reasons. Their movement is constrained by fierce fighting that is ongoing. Plans regarding them have to take into account a very complicated security scenario. The Embassy is in constant touch with the Ministry in that regard," the BJP leader said.
Over 180 people have been killed and 1,800 injured so far amid the clashes in the African country.
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)