Report: Indian man lands in Russia on his way to Italy and is sent to war against Ukraine by a travel agency

A disabled Punjabi youth was forced to join the Russian army after allegedly being tricked by travel agents.

Mandeep Kumar from Goraya, Jalandhar, was promised by a travel agent to be sent to Italy, but was lured to Moscow where he was forced to join the Russian army. Indian Express reported.

“My brother has a congenital limb defect (left leg). Mandeep and his friends were tricked into travelling to Italy via Armenia but ended up in Russia instead. They were exploited and threatened by agents who demanded more money,” the report quoted Jagdeep Kumar, the victim’s brother, as saying.

During his last contact with Mandeep, his family said that he was wearing an army uniform and begging for rescue.

“It was extremely disturbing for the family when we heard reports that Mandeep and other young Punjabi boys were forcibly recruited into the Russian army to serve in war-torn Ukraine,” Jagdeep Kumar told the Indian Express.

The report noted that the family sought help from the Centre. They approached Balbir Singh Seechewal, a Rajya Sabha member, who then raised the issue with the Ministry of External Affairs for speedy action to ensure the safe return of Balbir and others in a similar situation.

The report quoted Seechewal as saying, “It is very disturbing when innocent youth are lured by unscrupulous agents. We must warn our youth against falling prey to such traps.”

This is not the first case of youth being lured into working for the Russian army. Several such cases have been reported in different parts of the country. In March, a youth from Hyderabad was killed in the Russo-Ukrainian war. He had fallen victim to a job scam in which he was promised a job as a labourer but was later forced to join the Russian army and sent to the Ukrainian border.

Hamil Mangukiya, originally from Surat, applied for a job in Russia through an online advertisement and travelled from Chennai to Moscow. He was hired as an assistant in the Russian army. Mangukiya lost his life in a Ukrainian airstrike in the Donetsk region near the Russian-Ukrainian border on February 21.

(With contributions from agencies)