Families of Indians fighting Russia’s war with Ukraine protest, demand safe return of kin

Around two dozen families from across the country held a two-hour demonstration at Jantar Mantar here on Monday (November 3, 2025) seeking safe return of their kin who have been allegedly lured to Russia to fight the war with Ukraine.

One of the demonstrators, Saroj, 60, a resident of Rohtak’s Taimurpur village in Haryana, said her family sold off a plot of land and jewellery, and borrowed ₹6.5 lakh to arrange for her son Sandeep to go to Russia in search of a livelihood. But some agents “lured” him to sign a contract in return for some benefits and sent him to the war zone.

“When he told us that he was recruited into the Army for a handsome salary, we advised him to quit, but it was too late by then. They did not let him off,” said Mr. Sandeep’s cousin Ballu.

The family learnt about the 29-year-old’s ordeal when he sent a video to a local YouTuber in Haryana on October 1 giving details about how he was caught in the war zone. Mr. Ballu said the family had met Chief Minister Nayab Saini and other local BJP leaders, but to no avail.

Sonu had come from Sonipat to demand the safe return of his friend Vikram Kuhar, 22, a wrestler. “I am still in contact with him over Instagram. I spoke to him last night. One of the young men in his group died in a drone attack a few days back and he sustained an injury in the hand,” he said.

Mr. Sonu said that Mr. Kuhar had gone to Russia on a study visa two months ago when agents “lured” him with a ₹55 lakh annual contract for digging bunkers. “He comes from a poor family. His parents still don’t know about his predicament,” he said.

Ajay Kumar from Rajasthan’s Bikaner had gone to Russia last November to pursue a language course, but, according to his family, he was “lured” to fight the war with a promise of permanent citizenship, a ₹65 lakh annual job contract and a flat.

Prakash Godara, who came to Delhi for the demonstration, said the family had last heard from Mr. Ajay on September 21 this year. “He told us that he had spent eight days in a jungle after a drone attack killed three of his friends,” he said.

Mr. Godara said the family had met Union Minister of State for Law and Justice Arjun Ram Meghwal, also the Bikaner MP, many times and he has raised the matter to the External Affairs Ministry, but there has been no headway. “We came to Delhi hoping that the government will eventually listen to us and bring our loved ones back,” said Mr. Godara.

Haryana social activist Shri Bhagwan, whose cousin is also stuck in Russia, brought these families together through a WhatsApp group and organised the protest. He said 27 families were part of the group.

“On October 23, when we sought permission for the demonstration, there were only 14 members. The number doubled in ten days as the word spread. Two families joined today. Many families were unable to travel to Delhi for various reasons else the number could be much higher,” he said.

Before holding the demonstration, the families went to the Embassy of the Russian Federation and the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) with their demands. Mr. Shri Bhagwan said some MEA officials told the families that they had details of 55 youth, including the kin of these 27 families, participating in the war and efforts were on to bring them back soon.

Around a dozen from Haryana, six each from Rajasthan, Punjab, and Jammu & Kashmir, and families from Mumbai, Hyderabad, and Gujarat took part in the protest.