Press TV - A group of Indian pilgrims in Iran have gathered in front of their country�s embassy in Tehran to denounce the New Delhi government�s failure to consider their demand for evacuation�after more than two weeks of being stranded over fears of exposure to the new coronavirus.

The stranded pilgrims, mostly from Kargil and Leh districts in the Ladakh region of Indian-administered Kashmir, staged the protest on Thursday after the Indian government allegedly failed to duly consider their demand for immediate evacuation.

There are about 2,000 Indian pilgrims stranded in Iran. They visited religious shrines in the Islamic country but got stuck as regular commercial flights were suspended between the two countries following the spread of the virus.

The new coronavirus, called COVID-19, initially emerged in China late last year and is now spreading in Europe and across the Middle East, sparking a global pandemic.

Iran has taken an all-of-government approach to fighting the outbreak.

Iranian health authorities said on Thursday that 10,075 people were confirmed positive for coronavirus in the country since the infection was detected on February 19.

A total of 429 have died of the virus while the number of people released from hospitals after recovering from the illness has surpassed 3,000.

The Indian government is widely accused of bias and violence against the Muslim minority in India, including prominently in Kashmir.