This month, 1,000 people chose to support the Kyiv Independent. Can we count on you, too?
Become a member
Skip to content
Edit post

Media: Indian men tricked, coerced into fighting for Russia

by Martin Fornusek March 7, 2024 10:23 AM 3 min read
A group of Indian men who claimed to have been tricked into Russian military service appeal for aid via video on the social media platform X in early March 2024. (X/open sources)
This audio is created with AI assistance

Multiple cases of Indian men coming to Russia for work or tourism before being coerced to join the war against Ukraine and, in some cases, dying in battle have appeared in the media in the past few days.

Russia's war against Ukraine resulted in heavy casualties for the Russian military. Seeking to limit unpopular conscription among the domestic population, Moscow has been attracting foreign recruits from countries in Central or South Asia and elsewhere.

Seven young men from the Indian states of Punjab and Haryana appealed to Indian authorities for help earlier this week in a video shared on the social platform X.

The group of men, dressed in military-style attire, claimed they left for Russia on Dec. 27, 2023, for the New Year's celebrations. Their travel agent offered to take them to Belarus without visas, where he subsequently abandoned them, an Indian man talking in the video said, according to the NDTV news channel.

Local police allegedly handed them over to Russian authorities, who made them sign documents and join the military to fight in Ukraine, NDTV reported on March 6.

"They were forced to join the army there since the documents which they signed in Belarus were in the Russian language. It said they either accept imprisonment for 10 years or join the Russian army," a relative of one of the men in the video claimed.

According to NDTV, nearly two dozen Indians are reportedly stranded in Russia or on the front line in Ukraine, all saying they had been tricked into military service. Other estimates say that the real numbers go into the hundreds.

Join our community
Support independent journalism in Ukraine. Join us in this fight.
Support us

Some Indian citizens have even been reportedly killed in battle. Hemil Mangukiya, a 23-year-old from the Indian state of Gujarat, left for Russia to look for work last December, The Guardian reported on March 7.

The man's family said that early this year, they had received a call that Mangukiya was killed in a missile strike in Ukraine.

Another Indian, Mohammad Afsan, also reportedly died on the front line after traveling for a job in Moscow last November.

"He had no idea he was being sent to a war zone," said his brother Mohammad Imran, according to The Guardian.

"We are aware... the Indian Embassy has taken up their early discharge with the relevant Russian authorities. We urge all Indians to stay away from this conflict," a spokesperson of the Indian government told NDTV.

India's neighbor, Nepal, stopped issuing work permits for its citizens to work in Russia in January after growing numbers of Nepalese fighters have been reported killed fighting for the Russian army in Ukraine.

The U.K.'s Defense Ministry reported in September 2023 that Russia was trying to recruit foreigners and migrant workers to avoid announcing another mobilization drive before the presidential election, which is to be held in 2024.

Putin signs decree on giving Russian citizenship to foreign fighters
Foreign nationals who join the Russian Armed Forces will be able to apply for Russian citizenship, according to a decree signed by Russian President Vladimir Putin on Jan. 4.
Let’s see how far we can go?
We’ve been amazed by your support. We’ve reached our initial goal of finding 1,000 new paying members. We still have till the end of our birthday campaign — with more support, we can do even more good journalism. Over 13,000 people are standing behind us. Can we count on you, too?
Show us support this birthday month
Become a member
visa masterCard americanExpress

News Feed

4:06 PM

Politico lists Yermak, Putin among Europe's most influential people.

Politico presented on Dec. 10 its end-of-the-year list of the most influential people in Europe, with President Volodymyr Zelensky’s chief of staff Andriy Yermak and Russian President Vladimir Putin among the finalists for the "dreamers" and "doers" categories, respectively.
MORE NEWS

Editors' Picks

Enter your email to subscribe
Please, enter correct email address
Subscribe
* indicates required
* indicates required
Subscribe
* indicates required
* indicates required
Subscribe
* indicates required
Subscribe
* indicates required
Subscribe
* indicates required

Subscribe

* indicates required
Subscribe
* indicates required
Subscribe
* indicates required
Explaining Ukraine with Kate Tsurkan
* indicates required
Successfuly subscribed
Thank you for signing up for this newsletter. We’ve sent you a confirmation email.