Sainikhesh Ravichandran, a 21-year-old youngster from Tamil Nadu who was rejected twice by the Indian Army due to his height, has now joined the Ukrainian army to resist invading Russian troops. 

Hailing from Subramaniyampalayam near Thudiyalur in Coimbatore, Ravichandran had been studying aerospace engineering in Kharkiv when Russia invaded Ukraine. 

For a few days, Sainikhesh’s parents, Jhansi Lakshmi and Ravichandran, were unable to contact him. They alerted the Indian Embassy about it, following which the group of Central Intelligence Bureau officers visited his residence in Coimbatore and collected details about him. 

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The family was then informed that Sainikhesh had joined the Ukraine forces.

“I am terribly upset and I have requested the government of India to bring my son back to India. He had called home a few days ago, and he had said that he was safe but he did not listen to our requests to come back,” his father Ravichandran told IANS.

He is a part of the Georgian National Legion paramilitary unit comprising of volunteers.

Meanwhile, speaking to WION, Sainikhesh’s mother said she last spoke to her son around five days ago and that her family was extremely anguished.

The news comes at a time when India continues to evacuate stranded Indian students from Ukraine. The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said on Tuesday that all Indian students stranded in the city of Sumy have been moved out and flights under Operation Ganga are being prepared to bring them back home.

“Happy to inform that we have been able to move out all Indian students from Sumy. They are currently en route to Poltava, from where they will board trains to western Ukraine,” MEA spokesperson Arindam Bagchi tweeted. 

“Flights under Operation Ganga are being prepared to bring them home,” he said.