# Four Telangana men duped into Russian army, families plead for help 2026-09-30T07:37:26+00:00 | Governance | Indian Opinion Desk Corroboration: 4 independent outlets Four men from Telangana who travelled to Russia on promises of oil industry jobs are stranded after allegedly being forced into the Russian military and deployed near the frontline in Ukraine. Families of Bhookya Ravinder, 44, Sirshu Ashok, 44, Megavath Prakash, 40, and Mohammed Afzal Khan, 43, on Tuesday, 29 September, submitted a representation to the CM Pravasi Prajavani platform in Hyderabad seeking the state government’s help to bring them back. The men were not paid salaries and were then lured into joining the Russian army, their families said. An agent named Thelu Krishna allegedly promised them support roles, but they were trained in weapons and sent to Russian-occupied areas of Ukraine. The families said agents had placed recruitment advertisements for general helper jobs at $477 a month through ’Pondera Co’. NRI wing officials said they would coordinate with the Ministry of External Affairs and the Indian embassy in Moscow to secure the men’s return. ## Indian Opinion Analysis All four sources report the same core facts: four Telangana men were duped into the Russian military after being promised civilian jobs and their families have petitioned the state government. The coverage is near-uniform, led by straight descriptive accounts and quoting family members and officials. The Times of India adds the most detail on the recruitment advertisement and a separate work permit, while The News Minute and The Hindu independently name the agent Thelu Krishna. NDTV’s report is the briefest and most condensed. None of the sources carries an overt political framing, the story is reported as a humanitarian case with the state government responding through its NRI wing and the MEA. The divergence is minimal: some papers foreground the family’s emotional quotes, others the official response. The key next step is the state’s coordination with the Indian embassy in Moscow to secure the men’s return, a point all four sources confirm. ## Coverage Coverage: 4 sources, 4 neutral - timesofindia.indiatimes.com (neutral report) Straight factual report, details on ad and permit - thenewsminute.com (neutral report) Factual report, names the agent Thelu Krishna - thehindu.com (neutral report) Descriptive account, quotes families and officials - ndtv.com (neutral report) Brief condensed version of same facts This brief was synthesised by AI from the 4 sources linked above, so one read covers every framing they carry. Update, 30 September 2026: this story now draws on 4 sources. Last updated 2026-09-30T09:37:11+00:00. Tags: A Revanth Reddy, CM Prajavani, Indian Embassy Moscow, Ministry of External Affairs, Russia-Ukraine war, Telangana Canonical: https://indianopinion.org/4-telangana-men-trapped-in-russian-army-after-job-fraud-kin-plead-for-rescue/ License: Summary and commentary (c) Indian Opinion, reusable with attribution. Facts belong to the linked sources. Cite: https://indianopinion.org/4-telangana-men-trapped-in-russian-army-after-job-fraud-kin-plead-for-rescue/#story-in-brief How this brief was made: an AI model read the reports linked above and wrote this summary and analysis, which were published automatically. Published briefs are sampled every hour by an automated quality check; the editor verifies its findings and approves corrections, and corrected briefs carry a dated correction line. Stance labels are editorial classifications of how each outlet framed this story, assigned by the same model, not ratings of the outlets. We do no original reporting. Methodology: https://indianopinion.org/ai-use-policy/