Kerala duo’s desperate plea to return home from Russia-Ukraine war: ‘Mentally and physically, we are exhausted’

“Mentally and physically, we are exhausted,” Binil, who worked as an electrician back home, said in his message. “We are now in difficult terrain in the Russia-occupied territory of Ukraine. Our commander says that the contract was for a year. We have been pleading with local commanders for our release. The Indian Embassy is of the view that unless the Russian army relieves us, they cannot help. The Embassy says we should be taken back to Russian territory,’’ he said.

Binil and Jain are among the 100-odd Indians allegedly hoodwinked into fighting in the war. Most of these unsuspecting Indians came from poor families, lured with promises of better pay, up to Rs 2.5 lakh a month, sometimes even as “helpers” in the Russian army.

Besides these two, there are about 10 other Indian nationals who have gotten in touch with the Embassy over the last few months, it is learnt. Indian officials are in touch with Russian authorities regarding the release of all the remaining Indian nationals, sources say.

In July, Russia promised an early release of all Indians fighting in its army. This announcement came following Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Moscow, during which he raised the issue with President Vladimir Putin.

So far, around 45 Indians have been discharged. While some have already returned, others are waiting for their paperwork.

According to Binil, he and Jain were initially promised Rs 2 lakh a month, but the money never came.

“We are staying in camps not far away from the first line of battle. We have to carry food and other items, including thermal jackets, for the force for 8-10 km. The luggage weighs about 15 kg but we have to move fast due to the threat from air-borne attacks. They can send us to the first line of fight at any time,” he said.

Their duties included carrying the dead and the wounded from the battleground back to the camp.

“We put the dead into body bags, which are carried to a location where the rest of the process, such as identification, is conducted. There’s no time to sleep though because trucks with food reach the camp early in the morning,” he said.

The two went to Russia on a private visa with the help of another relative already in the Russian Army. But that relative was eventually among the several Indians who were discharged by Moscow following the Indian government’s intervention earlier this year.

Binil said he and other recruits were put in small groups in bunker-like facilities scattered across the region for “security reasons”.

“From conversations with Russians in the camp, we came to know that it’s Ukraine,” he said.

In June, they lost their documents and mobile phones while moving camps, said Binil. “One night, we were told to move out fast from a camp. Commander said ‘Go, go’. Our belongings, kept outside the camp, had to be abandoned. So, we couldn’t contact our families in Kerala for nearly two months.”

In the last week of August, they duo finally managed to access a phone and WiFi at a camp they had been sent to in order to collect food, according to Binil. It was during this call home that they were told of the death of one of their initial companions, Sandeep Chandran.

Sandeep, also a native of Thrissur, died in a drone attack while supplying food to a war zone. His death prompted the Kerala government to seek the Union Ministry of External Affairs’ intervention and bring back other Keralites still stuck on the war front.

Back home, Binil’s wife Joicy, a nurse, gave birth to a baby boy in the second week of August. “Until June, we were regularly in touch with Binil and my cousin Jain. But after that, nothing was heard from them. We thought they were undergoing training and mobile phones could not be used. It’s only later that we came to know that they lost everything (their phones and documents). Eventually, they managed to arrange a mobile phone after we sent money to the account of a Russian,’’ he said.

Joicy has repeatedly approached the state government, Union minister and Thrissur MP Suresh Gopi, and the Indian Embassy in Moscow to ensure early release of her husband and relative from the Russian war zone.

It’s been a week since Joicy heard from Binil, she said. “Things are getting worse in the war zone. They feel low. In recent weeks, they are not allowed to make calls due to restrictions on communication facilities,” she said.

Back in Chalakudy in Thrissur, it’s been roughly four months since Santhosh returned home from Russia. Santosh, who was among the Indians trained in the use of combat rifles in the Russian Army, was among 11 Indians — including three Keralites — who were repatriated in September after the central government’s intervention following Sandeep’s death.

According to Santosh, the CBI, which registered a case of human trafficking to Russia, questioned him and the others when they landed in Delhi. “They wanted to know about the modus operandi of our recruitment,” he said.

The state police, meanwhile, said they are aware of the recruitment of Kerala youths to the Russian army.

“These youths have gone to Russia on private visas with the help of Keralites settled in Moscow. Hence, the element of cheating per se is missing in the matter. We have looked into the role of the person in Chalakudy who had facilitated the youths’ journey to Moscow. We have not taken any case so far, but have sought legal opinion on the issue,” one officer said.