Captured in Ukraine, Indian student says he joined Russian army to escape drug charges
In the video, Hussein said he was sentenced to seven years in a Russian prison on drug-related charges and was offered the opportunity to sign a contract with the Russian military to avoid further punishment
The Gujarat police on Wednesday confirmed that 22-year-old Majoti Sahil Mohamed Hussein, who surrendered to Ukrainian forces while fighting alongside the Russian military, was a resident of Morbi town in the state and had gone to Russia for studies.
The Ukrainian military announced on Tuesday that an Indian national fighting alongside the Russian forces had surrendered.
The 63rd Mechanised Brigade of the Ukrainian military released a video of the Indian national, who identified himself as Majoti Sahil Mohamed Hussein from Gujarat. Citing The Kyiv Independent newspaper, the Ukrainian military said the 22-year-old came to Russia to study at a university.
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In the video, Hussein said he was sentenced to seven years in a Russian prison on drug-related charges and was offered the opportunity to sign a contract with the Russian military to avoid further punishment.
When reporters tried to contact Hussein's family members at their home in the Kalika plot area of Morbi town, his mother refused to disclose anything. She then left for an unidentified location after locking the house.
"As per a preliminary probe, Sahil was a resident of Morbi and went to Russia for further studies several years ago. We also learnt that he was sent to jail after being caught in a drug-related case there," Inspector General of Rajkot Range Ashok Kumar Yadav told PTI.
The senior IPS officer said the local police are investigating the matter from various angles, including how and when he acquired a passport, a visa and his links.
"I didn't want to stay in prison, so I signed a contract for the special military operation. But I wanted to get out of there," Hussein said.
After 16 days of training, Hussein was sent on his first combat mission on October 1, which lasted three days. Following a fight with his commander, he surrendered to Ukrainian troops.
"I came across a Ukrainian trench position about two to three kilometres away. I immediately put down my rifle and said that I didn't want to fight. I needed help. I don't want to go back to Russia," he said in the video.
The Ministry of External Affairs last month said that India had strongly called upon Russia to release and repatriate 27 Indian nationals currently serving with the Russian Army. There have been reports that some Indians on student and business visas were forced into joining Russian military units deployed on the frontlines of the war in Ukraine.
