MAU: Rakesh Yadav (29) of Azamgarh and Brajesh Yadav (30) of Mau district of UP, who came back home with injuries in Sept last year, had a lot to tell others.
Wall painters by profession, both Rakesh and Brajesh were sold a dream of earning Rs 2 lakh per month as security guards in Russia, but after landing on Russian soil, they were immediately tested for physical fitness and then sent to undisclosed locations for 15 days of combat training with modern weapons, and later transported in military trucks to fight against Ukrainian soldiers on various fronts along the Russia-Ukraine border.
Ironically, their injuries caused by bullets and grenade splinters in the battlefield became their ticket to freedom. After spending several months in hospital, they were sent back home following PM Narendra Modi’s intervention. Still recovering from war trauma, both Rakesh and Brajesh are now peacefully earning daily wages with painting jobs to feed their children and cherish each day of their lives together.
“On arrival in Russia on Jan 17, 2024, our agents Sumit and Dushyant, with the help of a Russian national, opened bank accounts in our names and wired Rs 7 lakh each into them. However, the agents took away debit cards and bank details.
Later, Russian soldiers told us that we were sold by the agents to fight with Russian Army. We were given 15 days training in a forest and then sent to assist Russian soldiers. Initially, we were kept behind to load arms, ammunition in trucks, clean bunkers and cook food, but when Russians took heavy casualties on the battlefield, we were forced to pick up weapons and fight against Ukrainian soldiers.
I was sent to fight at Sudzha, which is 10km away from the Russian-Ukrainian border,” said Rakesh, who went with six other Indian men hailing from Azamgarh and Mau.
While rescuing a Russian commander, Rakesh sustained injuries from a Ukrainian drone grenade splinter that struck his elbow. He was taken to a Chechen-controlled hospital along with other injured soldiers including Vinod Yadav (Mau), Dhirendra Kumar, Arvind Kumar, Yogendra Yadav and Kanhaiya Yadav of Azamgarh.
Kanhaiya succumbed in the war, whilst all others who recovered from battle injuries were sent back to the warfront, except Rakesh, who later managed to contact the Indian embassy in Russia and returned home in Sept last week along with Brajesh Yadav of Mau district.
“This was my third foreign trip for work. Earlier I had worked in Malaysia and Dubai for four years. We, all 12 men from Azamgarh and Mau, were persuaded by Vinod Yadav, the local job agent, to head to Russia for a good salary package. In fact, for the first time, he, too, joined to work as a labourer abroad with us.
I along with five other men were sent to Belarus with a direct flight from New Delhi. From there, we were sent to Luhansk, a Ukrainian city under Russian control, to fight against Ukrainian soldiers.
We were deceived by Russia-based job agents Sumit and Dushyant. They sold us to fight in the war. After sustaining injuries, I was admitted to hospital where I spent two months, and upon PM Narendra Modi’s arrival in July to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin, I was taken under the custody of the Indian embassy and evacuated back home,” said Brajesh of Lilhawa village of Mau district.
He came in contact with Rakesh via phone whilst both were admitted to different hospitals after sustaining injuries.
Hailing from Bhimsenpur village of Azamgarh district, this was the second time Rakesh was deceived in the name of better job opportunities abroad. Earlier in 2022, he had spent 10 days in Vietnam, where a ‘job agent’ assured him work in a packaging company with good salary, but upon arrival, he discovered he had to work as a marble finishing labourer with no guarantee of returning home, as the employer refused to pay for the work visa and return flight ticket. He somehow came back to India.
