Hyderabad man duped into Russian job, forced to fight war, wife complains

Hyderabad, Oct 17 (PTI) A 37-year-old man from the city, who was offered a job in a construction company in Russia, is trapped on the Russia-Ukraine border and allegedly "forced" to fight in the war after being "duped" by a Mumbai-based agent, his family said here.

Mohammed Ahmed's wife has written to External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and requested him to rescue and repatriate her husband.

In a video message, Ahmed said, "The place where I am is border and war is going on. We four Indians refused to go (into the warzone). They threatened us to fight and pointed a weapon at me and another person. There is plaster on my leg. Don't leave the agent. The agent trapped and brought me here (Russia). The agent did not offer me work. I was forcibly brought here on the pretext of (giving) job".

In the letter addressed to Jaishankar, Ahmed's wife said a Mumbai-based consultancy firm offered a job to her husband in a construction company in Russia.

As per their agreement, Ahmed left India in April 2025 and reached Russia. She said there was no work for nearly one month, and later her husband, along with 30 others, was shifted to a remote area and given weapons training forcibly.

"After training, 26 persons were taken to the border area to fight the Ukrainian Army. While being taken to the border area, Ahmed jumped from the Army vehicle due to which he suffered a fracture in his right leg. He refused to fight. But, he is being threatened to either fight against the Ukrainian Army or get killed," Ahmed's wife said.

Ahmed's family members, including his wife, met AIMIM president Asaduddin Owaisi here on Thursday and requested him to help bring Ahmed back to Hyderabad.

Owaisi wrote to the MEA and requested it to look into the matter and get Ahmed repatriated from Russia to India.

An official from the Indian Embassy in Moscow wrote to Owaisi stating that they have shared the details of Ahmed with the Russian authorities and have requested for ensuring his early discharge from the Russian Army and safe repatriation to India.

"The Embassy has been following up on all cases of Indian nationals in the Russian Army on priority," the official said.

The Embassy will keep the family informed on any further updates regarding Ahmed, the official further said. PTI VVK GDK VVK ADB