BBCThe Indian government announced last week that Russia had fired dozens of the 91 Indians who had been tricked into enlisting in Soviet forces in the government’s conflict with Ukraine. Several of them have since left their homes, and the return procedure is in progress. Neyaz Farooquee from the BBC spoke with some of the people about their problems.
” I am in despair. I’m never sure if I’ll be returned in a field or in a safe place. Choose keep me”.
Urgen Tamang, a former American man, was released from the forefront of Russia’s third-year military engagement in southern Ukraine, a few days before the BBC received the following broadcast.
Mr. Tamang is one of the 91 Indians who were forced into combat during the conflict. The majority of them are from underprivileged people, and they were lured into the Russian army by agents who offered them cash and jobs, occasionally as “helpers.”
Rather, they were sent to the war area. Many of them claimed to have had little to no military training while stationed in areas of Ukraine under Russian control and had to maneuver mines, drones, missiles, and hero attacks.
Nine Indians have already died in the fight, and Indian specialists claim to have detained 19 for mortal prostitution.
Following a visit to Moscow by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who raised the issue with President Vladimir Putin, in July, Russia promised to release all Indians who were fighting in its troops asap. The two places have typically shared a nice relationship.
Forty-five of them have been discharged since next. Some people have comfortably returned home, while another, like Mr. Tamang, are traveling.
” I ca n’t believe I am out of there”, said Sunil Karwa, an electrician from Rajasthan who joined the Russian army in February. He was waiting to board his journey at the Moscow airports when he spoke to the BBC and was stationed close to Bakhmut, a city in eastern Ukraine where frequent fighting has broken out.
Mr. Karwa described scenes of destruction and death, which he felt the most deeply about when a person from his neighboring village was shot on the battlefield.
” They sent him up on the front 15 days after the wound, and he fainted in the field. He is paralysed today”, he said.
Like him, most of the other volunteers were also blue-collar staff aged between 19 and 35, who were hired by agencies based in India, Dubai and Russia.
They say their contracts were in Russian, a language they did n’t understand. Yet they signed it in the hope of getting better options.
Just a few names and photos, Mr. Karwa claimed,” The process was so speedy.”
After being deceived into joining in a nonexistent school by an education consultant, Raja Pathan enlisted in the army as a last resort in February.
” When I first arrived there, I noticed banners promoting military recruitment. By then, I had spent so much time and income that I decided to join anyway”, he said.
It was the death of two companions, which finally pushed Mr Pathan to keep. A compassionate Russian chief, who had facilitated his exit, helped him get free in August.
Today based in Moscow, he helps additional Indians escape from it.
Mohammad Sufyan from Telangana’s southwestern position made a return to India on September 12 along with five other guys.
Safe in his home, he carries the trauma of surviving on the frontline. “There was little rest there and in the beginning, I couldn’t speak to my family for 25 days,” he said.
The most traumatic incident occurred in February when his friend, an American male from Gujarat condition, was fatally stabbed just before his eyes.
” He was only 15 feet from me, digging a ditch near Krynky]in Kherson], when a projectile landed”, recalled Mr Sufyan. I took his body and threw it into the vehicle.
” After seeing the dead body of my friend, I did n’t have the strength for anything”, he added.
After the death, Mr Sufyan and other Indians stuck there released a video pleading for help, which reached Indian MP Asaduddin Owaisi, who raised the matter with the foreign ministry. Families of the men had also appealed to the Indian government for help in bringing them back.
Getty Images” It is a wonder I got up home”, said Azad Yusuf Kumar, a native of Indian-administered Kashmir, who was part of Mr Sufyan’s team in the military.
” One moment you are digging a ditch, and the next, an artillery falls and burns all over. If it fell on you or anyone else, it was just a matter of chance.
In February, Mr Kumar had told the BBC how he had shot his foot by mistake during training. “My commander kept saying, use your right hand to shoot, use your left hand to shoot, shoot above, shoot down,” he had said. “I had never touched a gun. It was extremely cold, and with the gun in my left hand, I ended up shooting my foot.”
He then returns to Kashmir and describes how his captain had accused him of purposefully shooting himself to avoid being on the front lines.
” But I am happy I did not come to battle. Four of my camp’s members perished in a subsequent strike. I could’ve been one of them”, he said.
Although current discharges have helped many, those who are still in Russia are feeling increasingly depressed as their release is pending.
Mr Tamang, who joined the Russian army in January, had earlier told The Indian Express newspaper through his local corporator, Rabi Pradhan, that 13 out of 15 non-Russian members of his unit had died.
His doubts and suspicion were heightened by the fact that he was sent to the front at least half after signing his release letter in August.
On 15 September, he was on his approach to Moscow but still doubtful if he was really heading home. ” I am away, but I did keep sending you my place”, he said.
When he last texted, he had left Ukraine, hoping to maintain his journey home.