India’s Ministry of External Affairs addressed concerns regarding Indian soldiers serving in the Russian Army, stating that several individuals have been successfully discharged following persistent intervention from New Delhi. This statement follows reports indicating that Indian nationals within the Russian military are requesting assistance for discharge amidst the ongoing conflict in Ukraine.
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Denying the above claims of Indian nationals within the Russian Army requesting for assistance, the external affairs ministry acknowledged that several Indians have served and are still serving in the Russian army at present.
Why are Indian soldiers asking for assistance?
A recent report surfaced alleging that numerous individuals from India were lured with promises of support jobs within the Russian territory, only to find themselves illegally enrolled in the Russian military due to the fraudulent practices of travel agents. These Indian citizens received inaccurate translations of their official documents and underwent military training without fully comprehending the situation.
Cases of appeals for discharge of the Indian Soldiers
The family members of an Indian national, Mohammad Sufiyan, 22 from Hyderabad had appealed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s administration for assistance. They reached out to Member of Parliament Asaduddin Owaisi, who subsequently sent a letter to the Ministry of External Affairs, urging for strict action to be taken to ensure the safe comeback of the stranded Indian nationals, including their family member, Sufiyan. It is known that Sufiyan sent a video to his family in his army attire, alleging that he had fallen victim to recruitment fraud. He further stated that the Indians are forced to fight for Russia in the war.
There have been other reports where family members of four Indian nationals have alleged that the recruiters in Russia misled them into joining the Wagner group, a private military company funded by Russia to combat against Ukraine and were previously involved in the Russia-Ukraine conflict.
How did the Indians get trapped?
During their trip to Dubai in 2023, four Indian individuals were approached by recruitment agents who offered them lucrative job opportunities. After returning to India in November, they were swiftly sent to Russia within a month. The job promised a salary exceeding Rs 2 lakh per month for the position of army security helpers in Russia. Allegedly, the recruiters also handed them Rs 3.5 lakh as a security deposit, according to a claim made by a family member. The report highlights that beyond these four individuals, an additional 60 Indians were duped like this into joining Russia’s private army during the Ukraine conflict.
This marked the initial instance of Indians being noted for their engagement in combat roles on the Russian side. Since November, approximately 18 Indian individuals have found themselves stranded in various Ukrainian cities such as Mariupol, Kharkov, Donetsk, and Rostov-on-Don, situated along the nation’s border with Russia. Tragically, one individual is reported to have lost their life in combat. The individuals originate from regions including Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, Punjab, and Jammu and Kashmir.
India’s Stance
Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal mentioned that India cautioned its citizens to stay away from getting entangled in the Russia-Ukraine Conflict, and was in constant touch with Moscow after reports of Indian nationals compelled to join Russian forces circulated.
Previously there were other reports of approximately 200 individuals from Nepal who were enlisted by the Russian military. Nepal’s foreign ministry confirmed in December that six Nepalese citizens, serving within the Russian army, lost their lives in the conflict with Ukraine.
Wagner Group
The Wagner Group was founded by Yevgeny Prigozhin. He was a a close partner of Vladimir Putin, Russian President. The organization sprung up during the Donbas War, which started in 2014. It played a prominent role in Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in which it hired inmates from Russian prison. Although Russian state completely funded it for defence purposes yet there have been serious allegations against this group for committing heinous crimes such as murder, torture, rape etc.
