Indian student fighting Russians in Ukraine wants to return, says family

New Delhi: A 21-year-old Indian aerospace engineering student in Ukraine, reportedly fighting against the Russian troops, has expressed his desire to return home, his family said. R. Sainikesh's family who lives in Tamil Nadu's Coimbatore, has told media that they had found he wanted to return when they talked to him.

In 2018, Sainikesh joined the National Aerospace University in Kharkiv and since then he had been there. Following the fighting, he had joined the Georgian National Legion, a paramilitary group helping Ukrainian soldiers, to fight against the Russians.

As his father Ravichandran asked what he was doing in war-torn country and why he was not coming back, Sainikesh said that he wished to be back in his country and stay with him family. Recently, intelligence officials contacted the family of the student after which they came to know that Sainikesh was fighting against Russia.

The family hopes that their son will be brought back safely by the Indian authorities under their ongoing evacuation operation. Sainikesh wanted to join the Indian Army but failed to qualify twice due to his height, and was sad over this. It is also said to be one of the reasons behind his joining the paramilitary unit.

In Ukraine, Sainikesh, had got a job at a video game developing firm, before the war started.