CHANDIGARH: AAP Rajya Sabha MP Balbir Singh Seechewal has sought the safe return of 88 Indian women stranded in Oman and one woman stranded in Dubai due to the ongoing conflict in West Asia.
In a letter to External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, Seechewal spoke of the hardships faced by the women in Oman, even highlighting their struggles in shelter homes before the escalation of the conflict.
He stated that these women had gone to Gulf countries in search of employment to support their families, but were deceived by 'fraudulent' travel agents and forced into work against their will. The women have alleged mental harassment as well as physical exploitation.
Attempts to return home often result in them being trapped in false legal cases, with large sums of money demanded for their release. He said that the women should have been evacuated even before the conflict began.
In the letter, the MP mentioned two heartwrenching cases: one woman who had lost her child and another woman who missed her husband's last rites.
Kiran, a resident of Muktsar in Punjab, had gone to Oman out of compulsion to fund the treatment of her child suffering from blood cancer. In January 2026, her child passed away. The family delayed the last rites for ten days, hoping she would return to see her child one last time, but travel agents demanded a huge sum of money for her return, which the family could not afford.
Pooja, a resident of Tarn Taran, could not return in time for her husband’s last rites after his death.
In both cases, the families were forced to perform the final rituals in the absence of the women.
According to available information, the atmosphere in the shelter homes is tense. Seechewal stated that it is natural for families to feel worried under such circumstances.
During the same parliamentary session, Minister of State for External Affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh informed in response to his question that currently 88 Indian women are staying in “One Stop Centres” (shelter homes) in Oman, while one woman is in UAE.
According to data presented by the Ministry of External Affairs in the Rajya Sabha, approximately 10,526 Indian women have been safely brought back from Gulf countries over the past six years.
These include women from Oman, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and Dubai, with the highest numbers from Oman and Kuwait. Between 2021 and 2025, 3,647 women were repatriated from Oman and 5,592 from Kuwait.
The US and Israel have been at war against Iran since February 28, which has heightened fear among the families of the stranded women. Reports of a missile strike in Oman that resulted in the deaths of two Indians have further intensified fears.