New Delhi: The elder brother of a missing seafarer has moved the Supreme Court, urging it to direct the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) to coordinate with Indian embassies in Ukraine and Romania to undertake search and rescue operations.
Bareilly-based Sandeep Kumar Gupta approached the top court after his family’s persistent requests to the Centre and Indian embassies in the two countries went unheard.
His brother Deepak Kumar Gupta was onboard MV AGN Ragnar–a cargo ship flying the flag of Palau—when it was struck by drones on 25 July in Black Sea. A certified Indian seafarer since June last year, Deepak was recruited by Turkey-based Neva Shipping Corporation.
The petition stated that the family wrote every single day—either to the MEA or the Indian embassies in the two countries—between 26 and 30 July. None of the representations received any response or any positive assurance that their concerns would be looked into.
“The Indian embassy in Romania, through an email, asked us to connect with its counterpart in Ukraine. I could never get through its phone number. We got no assurance of any help from the embassy in Ukraine,” Gupta told ThePrint.
Knock knock#IMO | #UN | #Government_of_India | Honourable Parliamentarians
Withdraw the resolution that declared seafarers as “Key Workers” if you will not protect their lives. this time #Navigation_bridge
Brother Chandra Ram Dubey and Brother Deepak Kumar Gupta are missing… pic.twitter.com/Agt55J5YHR
— FSUI (@FSUIINDIA) July 27, 2026
Four Indian crew members were onboard when the vessel was hit by drones, which, according to later reports, were Russian. At that time the vessel was transiting near the Sulina River Breakwater at the mouth of the Danube, in the Black Sea corridor between Ukraine and Romania.
Gupta told ThePrint that through some of his brother’s contacts in the shipping industry, he learned that two Indian crew members were rescued and are scheduled to reach Istanbul by 1 August. Currently, they are in a hospital in Ukraine.
Deepak and his crewmate Ram Chandra Dubey jumped into the water, he added.
The family members learnt about the incident when they received a call from the recruiting agency—Dwello Ship Management Private Limited (DSMPL)—on 26 July. The first written confirmation was received on 28 July, more than 60 hours after the attack. The mail from DSMPL stated the company had “no further confirmed information regarding his whereabouts available.”
Meanwhile, Gupta wrote to ARSVOM—a Romanian agency for saving human life at sea—on 26 July.
In an immediate response, the agency shared details about search and rescue (SAR) operations undertaken on 26 July, after they were alerted by the Romanian Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre at Constanta (MRCC Constanta).
One of its SAR vessels searched the designated area from Sulina to Sfântu Gheorghe between 10:40 am and 8 pm. The search operation ended within 10 hours.
“I wrote to ARSVOM following my telephonic conversation with an Indian embassy official in Ukraine, who talked about the possibility of my brother and the other crew slipping towards the Romania side due to the strong flow of water that day,” Gupta said.
The brother began to probe on his own. He searched about the vessel and came across an article in TradeWinds—a global source for shipping news—that reported the drone attack and the possible escape by two Indian crews.
Gupta connected with the article’s author who informed him that the report was based on Ambrey Analytics.
“When I spoke with Ambrey Analytics, I was told that they received the details from an agency that works closely with the coastguard of Romania. I could not reach out to that agency. However, the extensive details about two crew members and their location on the vessel before they jumped could not have been shared by anyone except them,” Gupta told ThePrint.
He immediately reached out to the recruiting agency, which said the news article was fake. But on speaking to the Indian embassy in Ukraine, he got hope. “I was told that the news in TradeWinds could be correct.”
While he continued his search, Gupta wrote to the MEA, its control room and the Pravasi Bharatiya Sahayata Kendra.
According to Gupta, only the Indian government can help the family trace his brother because the incident site straddles the Ukrainian and Romanian maritime zones, while the rescued persons, if any, are likely under Romanian jurisdiction.
Gupta’s lawyer Nishant Bharihoke mentioned his petition before a bench led by Chief Justice Surya Kant Friday. He urged the court to list the matter for a hearing, saying it required coordinated action by the Centre.
The bench assured Bharihoke that it will hear the case Monday.
“The Union of India is the only entity capable of moving the Governances of Romania and Ukraine, the flag State of Palau, and the international maritime rescue machinery. Its inaction, and the jurisdictional buck-passing between its own missions, violates the fundamental rights of the missing seafarer and of his family,” states the petition, invoking Article 32 of the Constitution.
Article 32 grants every individual the right to move the Supreme Court for the enforcement of their fundamental rights.
MV AGN Ragnar came under attack while leaving the Odessa port on 25 July 2026, MEA spokesperson Randeep Jaiswal told ThePrint.
“There were four Indian nationals on board, of whom two are safe and two are missing. We are in constant touch with the authorities both in Ukraine and Romania. Both have conducted search and rescue operations. We are also in touch with the family members of the missing Indian nationals and offering all possible help,” he added.
(Edited by Tony Rai)
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