'The request has been repeated numerous times...': India urges Iran to grant consular access to 16 Indian crew members of seized oil tanker

Representative image

• Indian Embassy requests access to 16 detained Indian crew on MT Valiant Roar.
• Embassy arranges food, water, and legal aid for crew with help from Iranian navy
• Crew accused of smuggling fuel; judicial process underway in Iran

Did our AI summary help?

The Indian Embassy in Tehran on Saturday called on Iranian authorities to allow consular access to 16 Indian crew members being held aboard the MT Valiant Roar, stating that repeated requests made since December 14 have so far not been granted.

A statement by the Indian Embassy read, "Around mid-December 2025, Mission was informed about the detention of the vessel MT Valiant Roar by Iranian authorities, with 16 Indian crew members on board. The Consulate of India in Bandar Abbas immediately (on 14 December) wrote to the Government of Iran seeking Consular Access to the crew."

"The request for consular access has been repeated numerous times since then, both by diplomatic correspondence and in-person meetings in Bandar Abbas and Tehran, including at the level of the Ambassador. The Iranian authorities were also requested to allow the crew to communicate with their families in India," added the statement.

The embassy said it is actively working to ensure the welfare of the detained crew, with arrangements made for food, water and fuel supplies with assistance from the Iranian navy. It is also coordinating with the UAE based ship owning company to secure legal representation and essential provisions, while the Indian Consulate in Dubai is pressing the company to extend full support.

"The Consulate also established contact with the UAE-based company that owns the ship on 15 December, and has subsequently been in touch with the Iran-based agents of the company, to press upon the company to ensure provision of food, water and fuel for the ship, and also to arrange legal representation for the crew in Iranian courts. Upon being informed by the ship of depleting food and water stocks, the Mission intervened with the Iranian navy to arrange emergency supplies of food and water in early January. The Indian Consulate in Dubai has also been pressing upon the ship-owning company to ensure legal representation and regular supplies of provisions to the ship," added the statement.

The matter is expected to be subject to judicial process in Iran. However, the Mission and the Consulate continue to press the Iranian authorities to grant early consular access to the crew, and to ensure expeditious completion of the judicial proceedings.

The statement by the Embassy comes shortly after, on Thursday, the family of Third Engineer Ketan Mehta appealed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the rescue of their son.

Mehta was one of the members of the 16 Indian crew members of the vessel MT Valiant Roar who were taken into custody by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC),

The MT Valiant Roar was intercepted by the IRGC on December 8, 2025, in the international waters near Dibba Port, UAE. The Iranian authorities have accused the vessel of smuggling 6,000 MT of fuel.

(With ANI inouts)