86 Indians attacked or murdered in foreign nations in 2023
What's the story
In 2023, 86 Indian nationals were attacked or murdered in different countries, the Ministry of External Affairs said.
Most of these incidents occurred in the United States with 12 cases reported. Canada, the United Kingdom, and Saudi Arabia reported 10 cases each of Indian nationals.
Minister of State for External Affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh shared this information during a parliamentary session on Thursday.
Rising trend
Rise in attacks on Indians abroad, assures government vigilance
The data highlighted an increasing trend of attacks on Indians abroad—29 cases in 2021, 57 in 2022, and 86 in 2023.
Responding to this concern, minister Singh said, "The safety and security of Indians abroad is one of the foremost priorities for the government of India."
He assured Indian missions and posts remain vigilant and immediately take up any incident with host country's authorities for proper investigation and punishment of perpetrators.
Consular assistance
Government's measures to support Indians abroad
Singh also emphasized that these issues are raised during meetings with officials of the concerned countries, "including at the highest levels."
To further assist Indian nationals abroad, a "24x7 helpline in the Indian Missions/Posts abroad" has been set up for consular assistance.
In a separate response, it was revealed that over two lakh Indians renounced their citizenship in 2023.
The data also presented a historical trend with varying numbers from previous years: 1,44,017 (2019), 85,256 (2020), and 1,63,370 (2021).
Detention
Detention of Indian fishermen by foreign authorities
However, the reasons for such decisions were not detailed in the report.
Further, Singh also informed about Indian fishermen detained by foreign authorities.
In 2023, Sri Lankan authorities detained 240 Indian fishermen and seized 35 fishing boats. By July 1, 2024, the numbers rose to 535 fishermen and 71 boats.
Meanwhile, Pakistan detained nine Indian fishermen last year and rose to 19 this year till July.
The minister assured the government is actively working with these countries for their release.