Former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister and PDP President Mehbooba Mufti on Monday sought the intervention of the External Affairs Ministry in facilitating the return of a Kashmiri who has allegedly been conned into fighting for the Russian Army against Ukraine.
Azad Yusuf Kumar, (31), hailing from the Poshwan Awantipora Pulwama in south Kashmir, and several other youths from the country were allegedly lured into Russia with a promise that they would be given security guard jobs and were later thrust onto the Ukrainian frontlines.
Mufti requested Minister of External Affairs S Jaishankar to intervene in facilitating his return.
“Request @DrSJaishankar ji @MEAIndia to intervene in facilitating the return of Azad Yousaf Kumar from Awantipora forcibly deployed into the Russian army to fight against Ukraine. The family is extremely distressed & worried about his safety,” Mufti said in a post on X.
On Sunday, a students’ body, Jammu and Kashmir Students Association, flagged concern about two Kashmiri youths Azad Kumar of Pulwama and Zahoor Ahmad Sheikh from Tangdhar Kupwara, who they said had gone missing in Russia.
They had also written to S Jaishankar, to help in their repatriation.
“We have received a response from @IndEmbMoscow (Embassy of India in Russia) after raising the issue with the MEA. They have informed us that they have taken up the matter regarding Azad Kumar & Zahoor Ahmad with the Russian authorities. Efforts are underway to facilitate their return to India,” J&K Students Association said on Monday.
Azad Kumar along with others, has allegedly fallen victim to a fraudulent job scheme . He applied for a job guarding a private building in Russia where he was forced into fighting for the Russian army against Ukraine.
