AIMIM president Asaduddin Owaisi expressed serious concern about the safety of Indian students stranded in Iran due to the ongoing unrest and urged the Central government to urgently implement an evacuation plan. While welcoming the recent conversation between External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and his Iranian counterpart, Owaisi emphasized that immediate action on the ground was necessary.

He said he had been contacted by anxious parents of Indian students studying at Shahid Beheshti University, which currently has around 70 to 80 Indian students enrolled, including several from Hyderabad. Owaisi pointed out multiple difficulties faced by the students and their families: communication has been disrupted due to internet shutdowns in Iran, parents are unable to arrange travel tickets, and many families lack the financial means to bring their children home.

He also alleged that university authorities are holding on to students’ passports and preventing them from leaving the country. Describing the situation as emotionally devastating, Owaisi said parents are deeply distressed and fearful because they cannot communicate with their children and have no clarity about their safety. He appealed to the Government of India to quickly formulate a comprehensive evacuation strategy for the hundreds of Indian students currently in Iran, stressing that swift intervention is necessary to avoid further panic and suffering.

Separately, speaking about the Maharashtra local body elections, Owaisi urged citizens to actively participate in voting across the 29 municipal corporations, including the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation. He stated that the elections provide people an opportunity to express their political choices and added that AIMIM had conducted a strong campaign and was optimistic about the outcome. Commenting on speculation regarding a possible alliance between the Thackeray brothers, Owaisi said any political impact would remain limited to Mumbai and would become clear once the voting results were known.