Help is needed, as relatives of Gurdaspur boys stuck in Russia plead
The families of two boys from the Gurdaspur district who are stranded in Russia have requested that the Ministry of External Affairs strive to secure their safe return from war-torn Ukraine to their hometowns.
Gagandeep Singh’s mother, Kulwant Kaur, of Dinanagar’s Awankha hamlet, said that her son had met a travel agency in November. She stated, “He had promised to take him to Moscow, where he would have a decent job.”
We come from a low-income family with modest land holdings. We hardly get enough money from two harvests a year to get by. Kaur stated that we chose to send Gagandeep to Russia, where he would be able to make decent money, in spite of our lack of resources.
She said, “My son was given the assurance by the travel agent that everything would be done legally.”
On December 27, last year, Gagandeep and Vikram, two other young people from the adjoining town of Jhandechak, took a plane to Russia. “A few days ago, Gagan called us on the phone. He informed us that the Belarusian police had turned him over to the Russian troops. After failing to satisfy the taxi owner’s financial demands, he was abandoned in the middle of the road by the guy who had traveled to Belarus in search of employment, according to Kulwant Kaur.
The Russians warned him that if he continued to travel without a valid visa, he would spend ten years in prison. They also assured him that enlisting in the army would not have any negative consequences. After a 15-day training period, he was sent as a foot soldier to fight the battle against Ukraine. I implore the Ministry of External Affairs to find and repatriate my son to India. In order to satisfy the travel agent’s demand of Rs 11 lakh, we had taken out a loan. We have no money, thus we are unable to repay the loan. Kulwant Kaur said, “We were counting on Gagan to send us money.”
Similarly, Vikram’s family related their story of misfortune. Given that both boys traveled to Russia at the same time, their stories were identical to Gagandeep’s.
