How many Indians inducted into Russian army have been discharged? How many are still left?

Since the Russia-Ukraine war began in February of 2022, many Indian families have been perturbed and worried as news emerged that their loved ones — sons, husbands, and brothers — had been wrongly listed in the Russian army and sent to the frontlines to fight the war.

Now, comes some relief as the Ministry of External Affairs announced that a total of 45 Indians had been discharged from the Russian military and were on their way home and efforts were still on to rescue another 50. Six of the 45, who have recently been discharged, were waiting to return to India after the completion of paperwork at the Indian Embassy.

One of them, identified as Azad Yousuf Kumar from Jammu and Kashmir, was quoted as telling The Independent, “We all are extremely happy. The nightmare that we have endured here will only end once we board the flight to India and land at the airport.”

As we await the arrival of the 45 from Russia, let’s take a closer look at how many Indians are serving in the Russian military, how they got there and what the authorities are doing to secure their release.

Indians in the Russian army

Shortly after the Russia-Ukraine war broke out, news emerged that over 90 Indians were being forced to serve as foot soldiers for the Russian military. Moreover, until August, eight Indians have been
killed in the conflict so far.

Families of those being duped into serving in the Russian military have been urging the government to secure their release and for many the agonising wait continues as their loved ones remain unwilling combatants in a totally foreign conflict.

However, on Thursday (September 12), the Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal in a press conference announced that Russia’s military had discharged 45 Indians. “Since PM Modi visited Russia in July, 35 Indians have been discharged from the Russian Army. Before the PM’s visit 10 Indian nationals were discharged,” Jaiswal said.

He also said that the authorities are trying their best to bring back the remaining 50 Indians who are currently working with the Russian Army.

Of the 45 who are now awaiting to return to India is 24-year-old Mohammad Sufiyan, a resident of Narayanpet in Telangana. Speaking to The Hindu while he awaits his paperwork to be completed, he said, “We were in the red zone, two kilometres away from the battlefield on Ukraine border. Our job was to ferry the dead bodies. There was constant bombing and firing. The bunkers they provided us to hide was so small that it was difficult to breathe.”

Sameer Ahmad, who is waiting with Sufiyan, chimed in, “It took us 36 hours to reach our base camp from the border. Our contracts were cancelled and now we have reached Moscow on our own.”

When contacted, Mohammad Mustafa, Sameer’s brother, said the family had received news about his return and were elated. “We are elated, but at the same time sad about the Indian brothers who have already died there. This day has come after almost eight months of struggle that involved filing for appeals with the government, coordination, and additional financial expenses,” he told The Independent.

Long, duplicitous route into Russian army

Many of the Indians serving as helpers in the Russian army relay that they found themselves on the frontlines after being
duped by agents. Some who have been able to speak to their loved ones say that social media platforms and local agents lured them to Russia by offering them lucrative jobs.

For instance, Kumar, who is awaiting his return home, alleges that he was duped by a YouTuber who promised him a job in Dubai.

Others also state that they fell for the same scam. They recount how they were duped by YouTube job scamsters, with many pointing fingers at
Faisal Khan, a Dubai-based YouTuber who runs the Baba Vlogs channel. They were allegedly convinced that they would work as non-combatant workers and helpers in the Russian army, far away from the frontlines.

The Indians trapped in the Russian army have also stated that they are given the bare minimum training — of just 10 days — and then shipped off to the frontlines of the war, where many of them struggle to survive. One of the many Indian recruits told the BBC that he had injured his foot during training. “My commander kept saying that use your right hand to shoot, use your left hand to shoot, shoot above, shoot down,” he recalled. “I had never touched a gun. It was extremely cold, and with the gun in my left hand, I ended up shooting my foot.”

A viral video earlier this year also showed a group of men from Punjab and Haryana — wearing army uniforms — claiming they were tricked into fighting the war in Ukraine and doubling down on their request for help.

Pushing for their release

Ever since videos of these recruits emerged on social media and families raised the issue with political leaders, the government has taken steps to secure their release.

Sufiyan’s brother, Salman Zahoor Sayyed told The Independent that they raised the matter with Hyderabad MP Asauddin Owaisi, who first raised the issue in Parliament.

Authorities report that since they were made aware of the situation, the issue has been taken up through diplomatic channels in both New Delhi and Moscow to secure their release. However, officials said that the matter of contracts being signed between the Indians and the Russian army was holding up their release.

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar also alluded to this when he spoke in Lok Sabha on August 9. He said, “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.”

Prime Minister Narendra Modi even raised the issue with President Vladimir Putin during his visit to Russia in July. In response, Russia’s Putin had promised that his country would do all it could to bring back Indians who were misled into joining the war in Ukraine.

Notably, after Jaishankar made his statement in Parliament, the Russian embassy in New Delhi announced that all recruitment of Indian nationals in Russia’s armed forces had stopped in April, and those who were currently serving would be discharged as soon as possible.

At home, Indian authorities have also carried out raids and busted a trafficking ring. Investigations revealed that a few firms sent at least 35 Indians to Russia, though an official said it was not clear if all of them were forced to fight in the war.