Kerala oppn leader urges Centre to take action to bring back youths forced into Russia-Ukraine war

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Leader of Opposition in the Kerala Assembly V D Satheesan sent a letter to External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Monday seeking immediate intervention of the central government to ensure the safe return of youths recruited by private agencies to the Russian army.

In the letter, the Congress leader demanded measures for the safe return of the three youths from Kerala trapped in the war zone and an investigation against the recruitment agencies that are a part of the human trafficking network. "I urge your good self to make every effort to bring back all of those who are stuck in the combat zone and to initiate a comprehensive investigation against these recruitment agencies that form part of a large illegal trafficking network," he said in the letter.

Satheesan termed as shocking the "revelation" that some private recruitment companies in Kerala have been recruiting young people to go to war-battered Ukraine after tempting them with the prospect of lucrative employment in Russia. "It is disturbing to learn that three young men from Kerala are among those stranded in war-torn Ukraine after being lured with the promise of a lucrative employment in Russia, only to be forced to engage in the continuing conflict," the letter said.

According to the relatives of the three men, he said, they were taken to Russia by a recruitment agency with the promise of a whopping salary of Rs 2.5 lakh. "But when they arrived, their passports and mobile phones were confiscated and they were then forced to fight for Russia against Ukraine. It is learnt that some of them are injured and their families back home have raised serious apprehension about the safety of the youths stranded in Ukraine," Satheesan said.

The Congress leader said he believes that this is part of a trafficking network that entices young men to work in Russia and then sends them to war. Union Minister of State for External Affairs V Muraleedharan said on Sunday that authorities have launched an investigation into agencies that recruited Indians to go to war-torn Ukraine after luring them with the promise of a lucrative jobs in Russia.

He said the Central government is making all possible efforts to bring back all Indians stranded in the conflict zone, and procedures are underway to take legal action against the agencies that recruited them.