Can't declare missing Indians dead without concrete evidence: Sushma

New Delhi: There is no concrete evidence that the 39 Indians abducted from Mosul in Iraq have been killed and “I will not commit the sin” of declaring them dead without any evidence, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj said today.

Making a forceful statement in the Lok Sabha, Swaraj said the government will continue its efforts to trace the Indians till it gets evidence that they were dead.

“This file will not close till there is proof that the 39 Indians were dead. I will not commit the sin of declaring them dead without any evidence,” Swaraj said, two days after holding talks with Iraqi foreign minister on the issue.

The external affairs minister said she had never misled Parliament or the families of the abducted Indians.

“I have never misled. I want to ask the opposition what benefit will I get by misleading. What benefit my government get by misleading the people on the issue,” she said.