4 Indians Forced to Fight in Russia-Ukraine War
Indian nationals tricked into lucrative security jobs in Russia ended up forced into the Wagner Group, prompting urgent pleas for government help amid the Russia-Ukraine conflict.
Relatives of four Indian nationals have claimed that foreign recruiters in Russia duped their family members into joining the Wagner Group. Wagner Group is a private military company of Russia allegedly funded by the Russian government and is involved in the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war. 22-year-old Mohammed Sufiyan from Telangana, along with three other Indians from Karnataka sent an SOS to their families after that they were stranded in Russia and forced to join the Russian army in the fight against Ukraine. A video was sent by Sufiyan to his family in which he was seen in army uniform and claimed that they had been a victim of recruitment fraud. He added that the recruiters had sent them to Russia after promising them jobs as security helpers, however, they were forced into fighting the Russia-Ukraine war against their will. In the video, Sufiyan wearing an army uniform was heard saying, “Please save us, we are victims of a hi-tech fraud.” How did they land in the trap? The men were working in Dubai where they earned between Rs 30,000 to Rs 40,000. There they met with the recruitment agent named Baba, who offered them a salary of more than Rs 2 lakh ($24,000) per month for the job of army security helpers in Russia. The agent is allegedly a man from Maharashtra who runs a YouTube channel, offering ‘security personnel/helper’ jobs in Russia. The agent allegedly charged each of them Rs 3.5 lakh for the security personnel positions. They came back to India and were sent to Russia. They boarded a flight from Chennai to Russia on a visitor's visa. Apart from these four Indian nationals, it is reported that another 100 Indians were forcibly drafted into the private army of Russia during the Ukraine war. They have reportedly been posted only 40 km from the Ukraine border, and they sent a message to their families after borrowing the mobile phone of a Russian army man. Sufiyan’s brother said, "My brother was taken by Baba Blocks Company, which has offices in Dubai, Delhi, and Mumbai. A total of 21 youths were sent in the first batch. They were made to sign an agreement in Russia. The agents gave the wrong translations of the documents to them. They were told that it is the job of army helpers. But, two days later, they were taken for military training. Even when the youths protested, the agents again misguided them, saying that it was only part of the training and they wouldn't be sent to the frontlines.” “When my brother Sufiyan spoke with me 15 days ago, he said they were just 40km from the Ukraine border. When my brother got one rare opportunity, he made use of a mobile phone belonging to a Russian army man and sent us a message. He begged that he and others should be helped to return to India at any cost.” Sufiyan's father has appealed to the Centre for assistance in bringing his son and his friends back home safely. Karnataka minister Priyank Kharge said that he had engaged in discussions with Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, urging him to escalate the matter to External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar's attention. "There is information that such job fraud has happened in several places such as Telangana, Karnataka, and several places in north India. Whatever it is, conning someone into waging war is wrong. The central government has to take this seriously and should come to their rescue immediately."
