SRINAGAR: Panic has gripped families in Jammu after three youth from the district, including a 23-year-old from Khour tehsil, reported being misled into joining the Russian Army and now face deployment on the frontline of the Ukraine conflict.
On September 13, Sachin Khajuria, son of Banarsi Lal of Pahariwala in Khour, made a desperate WhatsApp call to his brother Koushal from Moscow. “Please make all out efforts to ensure my return from Russia well before something untoward happens here, as I’m being sent to a forward post along the Ukrainian border by the Russian Army,” he has reportedly said in an emotional plea to his family.
According to Koushal, Sachin, along with Atul from Bawe Tallab, Mishriwala, Sumit Sharma from Kanachak, and 12 others from across India, were lured by a Russian woman agent, identified as Anastiya. She allegedly promised them lucrative jobs in bunker construction near the Ukrainian border, with a one-time payment of Rs 20 lakh, a monthly salary of Rs 2.5 lakh, and other benefits.
Trusting the offer, the youth signed documents in Russian, which were misrepresented in English. “They later realised they had unknowingly been enrolled into the Russian Army,” Koushal has reportedly said. The families said the youth, who had gone abroad for studies, are now being sent to frontline posts despite having no military training.
Parents of the trapped youth said their wards were assured of non-combat construction roles but were instead forced into active military duties without training or equipment. Alarmed, the families have approached their elected representatives and requested urgent intervention from Dr Jitendra Singh, MoS in the Prime Minister’s Office.
The matter has also been flagged to External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, with appeals for immediate diplomatic steps to secure their release. “A timely intervention can save lives and bring immense relief to parents who remain in constant fear for their children’s safety,” the families said in their joint appeal.
They demanded strict action against those responsible for misleading Indian youth into life-threatening conflict zones and urged the government to introduce safeguards to prevent similar exploitation.
There were two Kashmiris also caught in the Russia-Ukraine conflict. While one of them was termed untraceable, another youth from an Awantipore village was successfully rescued last year.
