The Centre on Wednesday said 259 Indians are believed to have been recruited into the Russian armed forces since the start of the Russia-Ukraine war, with 69 still believed to be serving with Russian forces. The Ministry of External Affairs said it has secured the early discharge of 139 Indians and is following up with Moscow for the release of those remaining.

The issue has repeatedly surfaced over the past two years, with videos and reports of Indians trapped with Russian forces appealing to the Indian government for help and repatriation.

In March 2024, videos showed Indian men claiming they had been deceived into joining the Russian Army, while families of Indians sent to the frontline also sought government intervention. The MEA on Wednesday again urged Indians to stay away from offers to join the Russian armed forces, calling such recruitment a “matter of deep concern" and warning that it is “fraught with grave danger to life".

The latest case emerged from Telangana, where several youths who travelled to Russia on promises of lucrative jobs said they were taken to military camps and pushed towards areas near the Ukraine border.

Kasthuri Tirupati, a resident of Nizamabad, told The New Indian Express that he and two others travelled to Russia on September 27 after being promised a salary of around Rs 2 lakh a month and an Rs 8 lakh insurance bonus. Instead, they were taken to a Russian military camp and told they would be assigned duties as soldiers.

Tirupati said around 30 people who wanted to leave the camp contacted Nizamabad MP Dharmapuri Arvind and sought help with their rescue and repatriation. He said more than 20 people were still in Russia, while he and two others had returned to India.

The development came days after families of four other Telangana men alleged that their relatives, who had travelled to Russia for jobs, were recruited into the Russian military and deployed near the Russia-Ukraine border. Their families claimed the men were initially promised construction and other labour jobs.

The Telangana cases are the latest in a series of reports of Indians being lured to Russia with promises of jobs and subsequently finding themselves serving with Russian forces.

In March 2024, videos of Indian men in Russian military uniforms surfaced on social media, with some claiming they had been deceived into joining the Russian Army and were being forced towards the frontline. One group of seven men appealed to the Indian government and the Indian Embassy for help, saying they had signed contracts they could not understand before being enrolled in the Russian military.

Around the same time, The Indian Express reported that families from Punjab, Telangana, Karnataka, Gujarat and Kashmir said their relatives had travelled to Russia after being promised jobs as helpers in Russian government offices but were instead sent towards the warfront.

One such case involved former serviceman Urgen Tamang from West Bengal, who released a video appealing to the Indian government to “save" him after he said he was taken to a military camp and told he would have to fight in Ukraine. His family and local authorities sought help for his repatriation.