Political leaders from Jammu and Kashmir across party lines on Monday visited the Embassy of the Islamic Republic of Iran in New Delhi to express condolences over the assassination of Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, while also raising concerns about the safety of Indian students stranded in the conflict-hit country.
Last week, Kashmir witnessed widespread protests over the killing of Iran’s Supreme Leader in a coordinated airstrike by US and Israeli forces.
Former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister and Peoples Democratic Party Chief Mehbooba Mufti called on the Iranian Ambassador to India, Dr Mohammad Fathali, along with Budgam MLA Aga Syed Muntazir Mehdi. In a post on social media, Mufti said she was “touched by the warmth and graciousness” of the embassy staff despite the sombre atmosphere amid escalating tensions.
“It’s a powerful testament to the resilience of the people of Iran. May Allah SWT keep them safe in His protection,” she wrote.
“Visited the Iranian Cultural Centre & Embassy in Delhi to offer my deepest condolences to the people of Iran in these difficult times & paid my tributes to Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on his ‘martyrdom’. Also took up the issue of Kashmiri students stranded in Iran with the Hon’ble Ambassador,” she wrote in another post on X.
Members of Parliament from the Jammu and Kashmir National Conference — Chowdry Mohammad Ramzan, Sajjad Ahmed Kichloo and Gurwinder Singh Oberoi — also visited the embassy and signed the condolence book.
The MPs conveyed condolences on behalf of the people of Jammu and Kashmir and the party leadership, including NC president Farooq Abdullah and Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, a party statement said. They condemned what they termed a “unilateral and barbaric attack” by the United States and Israel on a sovereign nation, saying such actions violate international law and threaten regional peace.
Separately, Nasir Khuehami, National Convenor of the Jammu and Kashmir Students Association, also visited the Iranian Embassy and the Iran Culture House in New Delhi to express solidarity.
During his meeting with Ambassador Fathali and the Representative of the Supreme Leader of Iran in India, Hujjat-ul-Islam Abdul Majeed Hakeem Elahi, Khuehami raised concerns over the safety of Indian students, many of them from Kashmir, studying in Iranian cities such as Qom, Urmia and Arak.
Khuehami said the association has been receiving distress calls from students and their families amid reports of airstrikes and explosions in several regions.
Iranian officials informed him that about 500 foreign students, a majority from Kashmir, have already been relocated to safer areas and that efforts are on to move others to secure locations, a statement by JKSA said.
Ambassador Fathali assured that the safety of Indian students remains a priority and said authorities are exploring possible evacuation routes through neighbouring countries such as Armenia and Azerbaijan, in coordination with the Indian Embassy in Tehran.
The developments come amid growing concern among families in Kashmir as tensions continue to escalate in Iran, with students and parents anxiously awaiting further updates on evacuation efforts.
