SC seeks Centre’s report on missing captain after Hormuz attack

The Supreme Court on Tuesday asked the Union government to trace Captain Ashish Kumar, who went missing after a missile attack on his ship MT Skylight in the Strait of Hormuz on March 1. The court sought a status report after his wife Anshu Kumari petitioned, arguing that DNA tests disproved the presumption of his death. The bench led by Chief Justice Surya Kant directed Solicitor General Tushar Mehta to respond by Monday.

Anshu Kumari told the court that ransom calls from international numbers demanding Rs 20 lakh were received on March 4, and WhatsApp messages were delivered to her husband's device hours after the attack. She claimed his WhatsApp profile was manually deleted on March 31. The petition alleges the government failed to use diplomatic channels or launch a specialised investigation despite evidence of extortion and possible captivity.

The Times of India and Times Now both report that out of 20 crew members, 18 were rescued. Kumar and another Indian national remain missing. The Indian embassy in Muscat informed the family on May 15 that bone fragments found in the captain's cabin did not match Kumar's DNA, as per a Royal Oman Police forensic report.