US Tanker Seizure Puts Indian Officer’s Wedding in Uncertainty

Indian merchant navy officer Rikshit Chauhan’s wedding plans could possibly go for a toss as the US forces seized the Russian-flagged oil tanker he was serving in the North Atlantic last week.

Twentysix-year-old Chauhan is a native of Kangra district in Himachal Pradesh. The other two Indian crew members aboard the vessel are from Goa and Kerala. There were a total of 28 crew members in the tanker when seized by the US forces. Of them, two were Russian crew members and they were released. The remaining 20 Ukranians, six Georgians and three Indians are still under detention.

Chauhan was preparing to return home for his wedding scheduled on February 19, when the tanker was seized on January 10. He was aboard the tanker, Marinera, along with two other Indian crew members. All the three are now under detention.

Following the seizure, his family members urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to ensure his safe release and return to India. His family said that they last spoke to him on January 7, a few hours before interception by the US forces. Chauhan was on his first sea assignment with a Russian company and was sent to Venezuela.

Chauhan’s mother Reeta Devi urged the PM to take necessary measures for his early return. His father said that Chauhan joined the merchant navy on August 1. He told his family that his phone could possibly be out of reach as his company asked him to travel to Venezuela, even as tension was rising in the area due to US military action.

The Palampur MLA also sought details of the case to raise the matter with the Himachal Pradesh CM.