Fake Job Racket: 13 Tamils held hostage in Myanmar reach Tamil Nadu

CHENNAI: The first batch of 13 Tamils who were illegally trafficked to Myanmar and held captive there after being promised IT jobs in Thailand, arrived here safely, the Tamil Nadu government said on Wednesday. They were sent to their respective towns upon their arrival in Chennai.

In September, Chief Minister M K Stalin wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking the Centre's intervention to rescue and repatriate the Indians stranded in Myanmar.

On Wednesday, Minister of minorities welfare, refugees and evacuees, non-resident Tamils welfare, Gingee K S Masthan received the Tamils at the airport and said the travel expenses of the 13 Tamils would be borne by the government. "..the first set of 13 Tamils safely arrived via New Delhi here. After receiving them they were sent to their respective hometowns," he said in a Tweet.

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In the letter to Modi, Stalin had stated that 300 Indians, including around 50 Tamils had initially gone to Thailand for IT related jobs through private recruitment agencies. They were forcible taken from Thailand to Myanmar for carrying out illegal jobs online.