Families from Haryana, Rajasthan, J&K and other states protest at Jantar Mantar on November 3. Photo credit: Special arrangement
Around two dozen families from across the country staged a two-hour demonstration at Jantar Mantar here on Monday (November 3, 2025) for the safe return of their relatives who were allegedly lured to Russia to fight in the war with Ukraine.
One of the protesters, Saroj (60), a resident of Rohtak’s Taimurpur village in Haryana, said her family sold land and jewelery and borrowed ₹6.5 million to arrange for her son Sandeep to go to Russia in search of a livelihood. But some agents “lured” him to sign the contract in exchange for some favors and sent him to the war zone.
“When he told us that he was recruited into the army for a handsome salary, we advised him to quit, but it was too late. They didn’t let him go,” said Sandeep’s cousin Ballu.
The family learned of the 29-year-old’s ordeal when he sent a video to a local YouTuber in Haryana on October 1 detailing how he was caught in the war zone. Mr. Ballu said the family met Chief Minister Nayab Saini and other local BJP leaders but to no avail.
Sonu had come from Sonipat to demand the safe return of his friend Vikram Kuhar, 22, a wrestler. “I’m still in touch with him through Instagram. I spoke to him last night. One of the young men in his group died a few days ago in a drone attack and suffered an injury to his hand,” he said.
Families from Haryana, Rajasthan, J&K and other states protest at Jantar Mantar on November 3. Photo credit: Special arrangement
Mr Sonu said Mr Kuhar had gone to Russia on a study visa two months ago when agents “lured” him with a ₹55,000 year-long bunker digging contract. “He comes from a poor family. His parents still don’t know about his troubles,” he said.
Ajay Kumar, from Rajasthan’s Bikaner, went to Russia last November to take a language course, but was “lured” to fight in the war with the promise of permanent citizenship, a ₹65,000-a-year contract and an apartment, according to his family.
Prakash Godara, who came to Delhi for the demonstration, said the family last heard from Mr. Ajay on September 21 this year. “He told us he spent eight days in the jungle after a drone strike killed three of his friends,” he said.
Mr. Godara said the family had met Union Minister of State for Law and Justice Arjun Ram Meghwal, also Bikaner MP, many times and had taken up the matter with the Ministry of External Affairs, but there was no progress. “We came to Delhi hoping that the government would finally listen to us and bring our loved ones back,” Mr Godara said.
Haryana social activist Shri Bhagwan, whose cousin is also stuck in Russia, connected these families through a WhatsApp group and organized the protest. He said 27 families were part of the group.
“On October 23, when we sought permission to demonstrate, there were only 14 members. The number doubled in ten days as the word spread. Two families joined today. Many families could not travel to Delhi for various reasons, otherwise the number could have been much higher,” he said.
Before the demonstration, the families addressed their demands to the Embassy of the Russian Federation and the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA). Mr. Shri Bhagwan said that some MEA officials told the families that they have details of 55 youths, including relatives of these 27 families who participated in the war, and efforts are on to bring them back soon.
About a dozen from Haryana, six each from Rajasthan, Punjab and Jammu and Kashmir and families from Mumbai, Hyderabad and Gujarat took part in the protest.
Published – 03 Nov 2025 22:43 IST
