‘Totally unacceptable…Toughest legal action will be taken’: Jaishankar on Indians duped into joining Russian army

Thiruvananthapuram (Kerala) [India]: External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Thursday said “toughest legal action” will be taken against agents who duped students from Kerala into fighting for Russia in its war againt Ukraine.

Interacting with media persons in Thiruvanthanpuram today, Jaishankar said, “This is a matter of very, very deep concern for us, very strong concern for us. We called in the Russian ambassador. Our ambassador in Moscow was instructed to go to the foreign ministry.”

“It is totally unacceptable that any Indian should be taken to a conflict zone and in any manner be made to work for a conflict, for an army…,” Jaishankar said.

He further assured that the efforts were on to ascertain how many Indians were stuck in that country and attempts were being made to get them back.

“So we are finding out how many such Indians there are. We are trying to get them back. Even last few days, I know some people have come back….but it is something we take very seriously and very strongly,” Jaishankar said.

The Union Minister said, “I will tell you, toughest legal action will be taken in this case.I mean, this is something that is absolutely unacceptable.”

Last month, Ministry of External Affairs official spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said that India is constantly in touch with Russian authorities to have Indian nationals released and discharged from the Russian army as early as possible.

Asked about update on Indians who were duped by agents and sent to Russia to join the military, Jaiswal stated, “Regarding Russia, as I told you earlier also, we are constantly in touch with Russian authorities. We have taken it up strongly for them to have our nationals released and discharged as early as possible.”

Last month, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan had written to Jaishankar seeking assistance in repatriating three Kerala residents, who have been trapped in fighting for Russia against Ukraine at the forefront amid the ongoing conflict.

Stating that several other youths from various parts of the country are stranded in Russia and are waiting for repatriation, Vijayan urged EAM to take up the matter with the Russian Ministry of Foreign Ministers (MoFA).

Notably, at least two Indians have died while serving in the Russian army against Ukraine, as around 20 others were allegedly duped into fighting in Russia’s war with Ukraine on the pretext of lucrative jobs.
Recently, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), busted a major human trafficking network running across the country targeting Indian nationals on the promise of offering lucrative jobs abroad but allegedly sending them to the Russia-Ukraine war zone.

The central agency is conducting simultaneous searches at around 13 locations in Delhi, Trivandrum, Mumbai, Ambala, Chandigarh, Madurai and Chennai.

The CBI stated that these traffickers have been operating as an organised network and were luring Indian nationals through social media channels like YouTube, etc., and also through their local contacts and agents for highly paid jobs in Russia.

Thereafter, the trafficked Indian nationals were trained in combat roles and deployed at front bases in the Russia-Ukraine War zone against their wishes, thus, putting their lives in grave danger. It has been ascertained that some of the victims were also grievously injured in the war zone.

So far, around 35 instances of victims sent abroad have been established. The identity of more trafficking victims is also being established. The investigation is still underway.