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Man forced to fight for Russia dies, says family
Another family member who had gone to Russia and was injured in the conflict is currently hospitalised in Moscow, a relative said
A man from Thrissur district in Kerala, who had travelled to Russia in search of jobs last year but was forced to fight in the ongoing conflict with Ukraine, has died, his family said, citing the Indian Embassy in Moscow.
The deceased was identified as Binil Babu (31), a native of Kuttanellur in Thrissur district. He is survived by his parents, wife and a five-month-old son.
Saneesh, one of his relatives, told HT that Binil’s wife Joicy received verbal confirmation from the Indian embassy about his demise in the conflict.
“We got the verbal confirmation from the embassy around 1 pm on Monday. The confirmation came after the embassy got the word about Binil’s death from the Russian side. But we don’t have any other details about when or how he actually died. We are awaiting those details and trying to get his mortal remains back home,” Saneesh said.
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Another family member, Jain, who had also gone to Russia along with Binil and was subsequently injured in the conflict, is currently hospitalised in Moscow, Saneesh said.
“Jain said that he suffered injuries during the conflict but he was somehow taken out of the battlefield and transferred to Moscow where he has undergone surgery. He informed us that he is recuperating. We are trying to bring him back. We have lost one family member and we can’t lose another,” said Saneesh.
Saneesh said that he last spoke to Binil over WhatsApp on January 4 during which the latter talked about how he was on the frontlines of the war without adequate food and water.
“He said he had suffered immense physical and mental trauma and somehow wanted to come back home. Binil wanted to meet his newborn son,” he said.
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Binil and Jain had left Kerala for Russia in April 2024 after being promised by distant relative of lucrative job prospects. While they looked forward to plumbing and welding jobs in Russia, upon reaching there, they found that they were hired to participate in the ongoing conflict with Ukraine, their family said.
Initially, their jobs entailed the distribution of food and other supplies to soldiers on the war front. But in December last year, due to the absence of manpower, both of them were handed guns, given basic training and sent off to the frontline.
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In August last year, Sandeep Chandran (36), a native of Thrikkur in Thrissur district, was killed in a shell attack while moving in a military convoy during the Russia-Ukraine conflict.
Similar to Binil, Sandeep too was promised by an agency of lucrative jobs in Russia only to land there and be pushed into participating in the armed conflict.
