Why Indian national, fighting for Russia, surrendered before Ukraine army? Gujarat police reveal

Majoti Sahil Mohamed Hussein is a resident of Gujarat's Morbi town and gone to Russia for further studies several years ago.

The Gujarat Police on Wednesday confirmed that Majoti Sahil Mohamed Hussein, the 22-year-old Indian who surrendered to the Ukrainian forces while fighting alongside the Russian military, was a resident of Morbi town and had gone to Moscow for further studies.

Majoti Sahil Mohamed Hussein said in the video that he surrendered to the Ukrainian forces and told them he does not want to go back to Russia.(Screengrab)

Hussein had reportedly enlisted in the Russian military to avoid a prison sentence in a drug-related case. He joined the Russian force, not to fight, but to surrender the moment he got a chance so as to reach the Ukrainian border.

The 63rd Mechanised Brigade of the Ukrainian Army published a video of the Indian national on its Telegram channel on Tuesday and said he had surrendered to them on the frontlines.

So far, there has been no official word from the ministry of external affairs. People familiar with the matter had said on condition of anonymity that the Indian embassy in Kyiv was ascertaining the veracity of the report.

Meanwhile, Hussein's mother refused to disclose any information to reporters at their Morbi home. She locked the residence and left for an unknown location, apparently for privacy, news agency PTI reported.

Later, the 22-year-old's maternal uncle, Abdul Ibrahim Majoti, spoke to reporters and appealed to the central government to bring his nephew and other Indians stuck in the war zone back.

He said that Hussein used to live with his grandparents and mother, who had separated from his father two decades ago. “Sahil (Hussein) went abroad for higher studies. We are not aware of what happened to him there,” Abdul said.

The uncle said that Hussein had been a bright student since childhood, adding that all their family members are educated and well-settled, with some even serving in the government. "I urge the central government to bring back Sahil and others stuck in such a situation there,” Abdul added.

Inspector General Ashok Kumar Yadav of the Rajkot range cited a preliminary investigation and said that Hussein was a resident of Morbi and had gone to Russia for further studies many years ago.

“We also learnt that he was sent to jail after being caught in a drug-related case there,” Yadav told PTI.

He said that the local police are further investigating the matter from various angles, including how and when he acquired a passport, visa and his links.

What did the Indian national say?

In the video released by the Ukrainian troops, Hussein said that he had gone to Russia to study. He stated in Russian that after he was sentenced to seven years in prison on drug-related charges, he was given a chance to sign a contract with the Russian troops to avoid the jail term.

“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, using Moscow’s term for the invasion of Ukraine.

“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 added.

The Ukrainian force's post also accused Russia of continuing to "actively recruit foreigners into their army".

Last month, the MEA said that India had strongly called upon Russia to release and repatriate 27 Indian nationals currently serving with the Russian army.