New Delhi: Of the 69 Indians stuck fighting for the Russian army in Ukraine, at least 13 are from Punjab and Haryana, estimate coordinators of families affected by the issue.
Eight Indians have died during the ongoing war in Ukraine, thereby raising fears among Indians currently on the frontlines. India does not have a legal framework concerning its citizens joining foreign armies as mercenaries. Other countries like Nepal have banned its citizens from travelling to Russia or Ukraine for employment, after deaths of Nepali troops were reported. More than 200 Nepalis are currently serving in the Russian army.
The Russian Embassy in India says it is working on the discharge of Indian men “voluntarily” contracted for military service in the Russian army, according to a statement issued Saturday.
A day prior, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar said in Parliament that India does not necessarily “subscribe” to the views of Moscow and believed many Indians fighting in Ukraine were “misled”.
The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) has not issued a state-wise break up of pending cases of the 69 Indians yet to be discharged from the Russian army. They hail from seven states, namely Punjab, Haryana, Karnataka, Telangana, Gujarat, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh.
According to a Mumbai-based coordinator of the families, who did not wish to be named, Haryana tops the list with at least eight men from the state now looking to return home. At least another five are from Punjab, and four from Karnataka and Hyderabad.
Two men are also from Kashmir, Azad Yousuf Kumar and Zahoor Ahmad Sheikh, according to Nasir Khuehami, head of the J&K Students Union, who is assisting their families.
Out of the eight Indians who died, the mortal remains of four have been brought back to India, payments for which were made by the government through the Indian Community Welfare Fund (ICWF).
Of four remaining bodies, New Delhi continues to work with Moscow to repatriate them based on the wishes of the families. The four hailed from the states of Haryana, Gujarat, Punjab and Uttar Pradesh.
During his visit to Moscow last month, Prime Minister Narendra Modi raised the issue with Russian President Vladimir Putin who assured him that Indians trapped on the battlefield would be returned home.
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India does not ‘subscribe’ to Moscow’s views
In its latest statement Saturday, the Russian Embassy in India said: “The agencies concerned in both countries work in close coordination for early identification and discharge of Indian nationals who voluntarily contracted for military service in Russia. All contractual obligations and due compensation payments will be fulfilled in full measure.”
It added that Moscow has not been engaged in any “fraudulent schemes to recruit the Indian nationals for military service in Russia”.
In India, the CBI has registered a criminal case against immigration agents and entities allegedly involved in duping Indian nationals into serving in the Russian army. One of them includes a Dubai-based labour contractor who promised job opportunities through a YouTube channel, ‘Baba Vlogs’. The channel has since been taken down.
“[CBI] have examined those 14 people who have returned from Russia. Sufficient evidence has surfaced against 10 human traffickers whose identities we know. During the investigation, two of the accused were arrested on 24 April and two more on 7 May. All the four accused are presently in judicial custody,” Jaishankar told Parliament Friday.
He also explained the differences between how the two sides view the issue.
“The problem is that the Russian authorities maintain that these Indian nationals entered into contracts for service with the Russian army. We are not necessarily subscribing to that,” he said in the Lok Sabha.
“There are reasons to indicate that our nationals were misled. That they were being told that they’re going for some other job and then deployed with the Russian army,” he added.
Following Modi’s visit to Russia last month, Roman Babushkin, Deputy Chief of Mission at the Russian Embassy in India, had told reporters in Delhi that families of Indians killed in combat received compensation as per “contractual obligations”.
“[Compensation to the families] should have happened, according to the contractual obligations which envisage such kinds of things,” Babushkin had said.
(Edited by Amrtansh Arora)
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