DHARWAD: Hubballi-Dharwad West MLA Arvind Bellad has courted controversy, for an insensitve comment against the Haveri youth who lost his life in Ukraine recently. Bellad had told reporters that 10 people can be evacuated in a plane, in place of bringing back the body of Naveen Gyana Goudar, who was killed in reported shelling by the Russian forces at Kharkiv. This statement of Bellad was condemned by people across the board.
Speaking to reporters here on Thursday, Bellad said, “While evacuating people who are alive itself is a cumbersome exercise, bringing back a body from the conflict zone to the country is a much more difficult task. Despite all these headwinds, efforts are being made by the Ministry of External Affairs to bring back people stranded in war-hit Ukraine.”
Stating that PM Narendra Modi himself is monitoring the evacuation, the MLA said Modi has spoken to the Presidents of Russia and Ukraine, to ensure safe passage for Indians stranded there. “Airlifting people from war-hit areas is challenging. As far as bringing back a body, it is quite difficult. Moreover, more people could be accommodated in the space needed for the body,” he added.