In a small house at Hafizkhanpet beside Maheswari theatre, family members of 23-year-old Syed Sufiyan are worried a lot and keep praying to the almighty for his wellbeing. It has been over 20 days since Sufiyan communicated with them from Russia.
Sufiyan is one among a few Indian youth, who are in the Russia-Ukraine war zone after being duped by agents in the guise of providing security guard jobs.
“In the last SMS, he just extended his wishes and since then there has been no SMS or call from him. We are all tensed up,” says Mohd Salman, younger brother of Sufiyan. At present, Salman is driving an auto-rickshaw in Pune to eke out his livelihood.
Sufiyan was working as a helper in the packing section at Dubai airport, when he reportedly came in online contact with Faizal Khan, an agent in Dubai. He reportedly promised Sufiyan a security guard job in Russia and said he needed to undergo some physical training to get the job.
After visiting his parents, Sufiyan left for Chennai on December 17 and then reached Dubai before flying to Russia.
Initially, he was made to undergo training for about a week and was permitted to talk with his family members. After the training, he was deployed in the war zone close to the Ukraine border, says Salman.