Indians are being made to fight war in Ukraine by hiring them as helpers, Owaisi made this appeal to Jaishankar

AIMIM chief and Hyderabad MP Asaduddin Owaisi urged External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar to rescue three Indians who have allegedly been forced to fight in Russia’s war against Ukraine. Owaisi, citing a report by The Hindu, said that the Indians were allegedly duped by an agent and sent there to work as army security assistants. All three Indians are from Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, Punjab and Jammu and Kashmir. This is the first time that the presence of Indians fighting with the Russian army in the ongoing war has been reported.

Tagging Jaishankar, Owaisi said that please use your good offices to bring these people back home. Their lives are in danger and their families are rightfully worried. It has been two years since Russia launched its aggression against Ukraine and around 18 Indians are believed to be stranded on the Russia-Ukraine border. The matter came to light when a family member of a victim from Hyderabad contacted Owaisi. The Hyderabad MP had written to Jaishankar and the Indian Embassy in Moscow seeking intervention.

One of the victims is in his 20s. Told The Hindu that all three of them had come to Russia through an agent named Faisal Khan, who runs a YouTube channel named ‘Baba Vlogs’. The victims were reportedly promised deployment as assistants. The victims said they were trained by the Russian military in handling weapons and ammunition and forced to fight at gunpoint in Rostov-on-Don on the Russia-Ukraine border. We were made to sign contracts stating that we were being hired as Army Security Assistants. We were clearly told that we would not be sent to the battlefield and were promised a salary of Rs 1.95 lakh and an additional bonus of Rs 50,000 per month.

Sir @DrSJaishankar kindly use your good offices to bring these men back home. Their lives are at risk & their families are justifiably worried. https://t.co/pDmvdeO5HZ

— Asaduddin Owaisi (@asadowaisi) February 21, 2024