‘We May Not Survive’: Lured via Telegram With Job Offers, Three Indians Trapped in Myanmar Appeal to MEA
“If we are not rescued from this place within two days, we may not survive. Our lives are in danger.”
In a video sent to their families and seen by The Wire, three visibly frightened Indian nationals, speaking in hushed tones, pleaded to be urgently rescued from Myanmar, where they say they are being held captive after being offered jobs under false pretences.
The men – Mohammad Usman Ansari and Mohammad Hasan Raza from Uttar Pradesh’s Kushinagar, and Anuranjan Kumar from Bihar’s Sitamarhi – were lured via a channel on social media app Telegram with the promise of good pay and lucrative jobs in Myawaddy, Myanmar. Though promised employment as construction workers, they are now being held there against their will and forced to participate in online scamming operations.
They have released a series of video messages seeking help from the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), the Government of India, and the Indian Embassy to rescue them before any tragedy strikes. According to their families, they were contacted on Telegram and the alleged employers had offered a monthly salary of Rs 1 lakh, following an online interview.
The details of this Telegram channel could not be immediately ascertained because only the victims knew them.
“Hasan is the only earning member of my family. How will we survive without him?” asked Munawwar Raza, his father, speaking to The Wire over a phone call. “My son has been taken 750 kilometres away from Yangon into a dense jungle. Nobody will know what happens to him," he said.
In a separate video message, Raza's father has also appealed to the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) and the Indian Embassy in Myanmar for immediate intervention, pleading, "Please bring my son back alive."
Mohammad Hasan Raza's father.
Hasan's brother, Mohammad Amir, alleged that the Indian Embassy informed the family that the area where the victims were being held falls outside its effective jurisdiction, though officials assured them safety, saying "we will rescue them as soon as we can."
Amir told The Wire that the embassy has repeatedly assured this for over 40 days but there has been no movement.
Meanwhile, Rehana Khatoon, Usman Ansari's mother, was visibly distressed as she started speaking about her son in another video appeal. Tears rolled down her cheeks as she said, “My son is being fed only rice and potatoes. He is diabetic. We sent him away because the salary was enough to feed the family."
How it unfolded
According to the "offer letters" that the they received on April 20, 2026, Anuranjan Kumar was hired as a “Construction Engineer", Mohammad Hasan Raza was hired as a “General Constructor”, and Mohammad Usman Ansari was hired as a “Construction Architect” in Myanmar. The letters were issued under the letterheads of Swam Inn Thit Company Limited, in case of Kumar and Raza, and Wu Xinsun Company Limited for Ansari – both companies listing their addresses at 20 Street, Latha Township, Yangon Region, Myanmar.
The offer letters they received.
The offer letters they received.
The offer letters they received.
A secondary document addressed to the Myanmar Ministry of Immigration and Population requested a business e-visa. In this file, the company’s director, U Chit Paing, provided his apparent passport number, contact details and email, assuming full legal responsibility to ensure the men adhered strictly to authorised business activities.
The trio left for Myanmar on May 2. Upon arrival, however, their passports, visas and other identification documents were confiscated by the alleged employers. They also alleged in their video that they were being subjected to brutal physical violence.
“We are trying to connect to the Indian Embassy, but they hang up our calls within a few seconds,” said Anuranjan Kumar. “We have been sending our videos to the embassy consistently, but to no avail.”
The three men are among thousands targeted by the notorious Myawaddy scam centres. The Indian Embassy in Yangon has acknowledged that the mission has strongly taken up the issue of Indian nationals trapped in these cyber-scam networks with concerned authorities.
'Outside jurisdiction'
Embassy officials have allegedly said that the Myawaddy area is not under the effective control of the Myanmar government, creating massive hurdles and delays in rescue operations. As per the Indian Embassy in Yangon, 2,414 Indians have been repatriated since July 2022 with the assistance of Myanmar and Thailand authorities.
The embassy has regularly been issuing advisory reiterations warning against fraudulent job offers. However, many continue to fall prey to the promises of better pay and job security.
An advisory by the Indian Ebassy in Yangon.
On May 19, 2026, former Congress MLA from Kushinagar Ajay Kumar Lallu wrote to the Ministry of External Affairs seeking the immediate rescue and repatriation of the three men, but received no response.
In a follow-up letter seen by The Wire, Lallu reiterated his plea for swift action, highlighting that the men are facing severe mental, financial, and humanitarian distress. The letter urges the government to verify their coordinates through the mission in Myanmar and protect the safety, dignity and human rights of these citizens.
The crisis highlights a deeper systemic issue back home. According to a previous report by The Wire and data from the National Statistics Office (NSO) published by Business Standard, India’s unemployment rate rose to an 11-month high of 5.5% in May 2026, up from 5.2% in April.
With severely limited employment options at home, economically vulnerable citizens are increasingly falling prey to sophisticated international cyber-fraud syndicates. While the Indian Embassy continues to cite geopolitical and conflict-related challenges in the Myawaddy region, trapped citizens and their frantic families are left waiting as time rapidly runs out.
The Wire has reached out to the Indian Embassy in Myanmar seeking an update on the rescue operation but has not received a response so far. This story will be updated on receiving an update from the embassy.
This article went live on June thirtieth, two thousand twenty six, at one minutes past four in the afternoon.The Wire is now on WhatsApp. Follow our channel for sharp analysis and opinions on the latest developments.
