Supporting Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and an “Akhand Russia”, the Hindu Sena has put up posters on a statue of Russian poet Alexander Pushkin in New Delhi’s Mandi House.
“Indian Hindus are with Putin and Russia in establishing the Soviet Union. Jai ho Akhand Russia. Jai Bharat," read the posters.
Speaking to the Indian Express, Vishnu Gupta, national president of the Hindu Sena, said that they are supporting Russia in this war and are praying that they get back their old Soviet Union.
“We only put up posters to support Russia in times like these. No war is good, but if we have to choose between good and better, we would stand in support of Russia, as Russia has always been a true friend of India… We pray and support Russia getting back their old Soviet Union and the country taking all necessary action to safeguard their borders," he said.
Check out the posters below:
Meanwhile, in the first Indian casualty in the war in Ukraine, a medical student from Karnataka's Haveri district was killed in intense shelling in the eastern Ukrainian city of Kharkiv on Tuesday.
Following the incident, India asked the envoys of both Russia and Ukraine to ensure "urgent safe passage" to Indian nationals who are still in Kharkiv and in other cities in the conflict zones.
The victim was identified as Naveen Shekarappa Gyanagoudar, a native of Chalageri in the Haveri district of Karnataka who was studying at a medical college in Ukraine, according to Karnataka State Disaster Management Authority Commissioner Manoj Rajan.
"With profound sorrow we confirm that an Indian student lost his life in shelling in Kharkiv this morning," External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said on Twitter at 2:58 PM.
"The Ministry is in touch with his family. We convey our deepest condolences to the family," he said.
Besides, Prime Minister Narendra Modi today chaired a high-level meeting to review the efforts to bring back Indians stranded in Ukraine.
The meeting was attended by External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, Minister of Commerce & Industry Piyush Goyal, Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla, National Security Advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval and senior officials.
