Under Saudi rules, remains can be handed over to families only after DNA identification, a process likely to take one to two weeks or longer.
Published Nov 18, 2025 | 3:02 PM ⚊ Updated Nov 18, 2025 | 3:02 PM
Indian consular officials in Jeddah and Riyadh are coordinating closely with Saudi authorities to speed up identification, documentation and repatriation. Credit: x.com/Rebel_Warriors
Synopsis: A horrific bus-tanker collision near Medina killed 45 Indian pilgrims, mostly from Hyderabad, wiping out an entire 18-member family. Only one survivor, Abdul Shoeb, escaped with severe burns. The Telangana government and Indian consulates are assisting with DNA identification and repatriation of remains amid profound grief in Hyderabad’s Muslim neighbourhoods.
The devastating bus-fire near the holy city of Medina in Saudi Arabia on Monday, 17 November, wiped out an entire 18-member extended family along with 27 other pilgrims.
The bus, carrying 46 passengers—including 45 from Hyderabad—was just 25 km from the holy city when it rammed into a stationary oil tanker on the Mecca–Medina highway around 3 a.m. local time.
The collision triggered an explosive blaze that engulfed both vehicles within seconds, reducing the bus to a heap of charred metal and turning almost all onboard to ashes.
Only one passenger, 38-year-old Abdul Shoeb, managed to escape the inferno alive. He sustained severe burn injuries and is undergoing treatment at a hospital in Medina.
Among the victims were 18 women, 17 men, and 10 children. The human toll was particularly crushing for Hyderabad’s Vidya Nagar locality, where 18 members of a single extended family lost their lives.
Other families were shattered too—six from Tapachabutra, five from Moghul Khan, and four from Zeera. One victim was from Hubli, Karnataka.
The group had flown from Hyderabad to Jeddah on 9 November for a 15-day pilgrimage organised by a private operator, with plans to visit Mecca, Medina, and other religious sites before returning to India on 23 November.
Saudi preliminary reports and eyewitness accounts confirmed that the bus hit the oil tanker parked on the roadside, triggering a fire so intense that most bodies were burnt beyond recognition. Saudi rescue teams shifted the remains to three mortuaries in the Mecca region.
Under Saudi rules, remains can be handed over to families only after DNA identification, a process likely to take one to two weeks or longer. Indian consular officials in Jeddah and Riyadh are coordinating closely with Saudi authorities to speed up identification, documentation and repatriation.
As news of the tragedy spread, heartbroken relatives gathered across Vidya Nagar, Afzalganj, Nataraj Nagar, Tapachabutra and other neighbourhoods.
Telangana Minority Welfare Minister Mohammed Azharuddin visited the bereaved families on Monday evening, first meeting relatives of Abdul Khadar in Afzalganj and later the family of Ahmad Ali in Nataraj Nagar. He conveyed the state government’s condolences and assured full support.
“Words cannot ease the pain these families are going through. The entire state stands with them in this hour of unimaginable sorrow,” Azharuddin said.
The Telangana government has set up a control room at the Minorities Welfare Department to coordinate with the Ministry of External Affairs and the Indian Consulate in Jeddah.
Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy has directed officials to extend every necessary assistance, including financial aid under Shaadi Mubarak and other welfare schemes.
The Indian Embassy in Riyadh expressed deep grief, stating: “Our consulate teams are on the ground in Medina and Mecca, providing all necessary consular assistance to the lone survivor and working round-the-clock with Saudi authorities for early identification and repatriation of the mortal remains.”
Across Hyderabad, mosques are offering Namaz-e-Janaza Ghaibana (funeral prayers in absentia). Community leaders have appealed for blood donations and requested the public to respect the privacy of mourning families.
(Edited by Amit Vasudev)
