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Updated: Jan 16, 2019 20:54 IST

As many as 15 Indians stranded in Iraq after being duped by an agent on the pretext of employment have requested external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj to help them return to India.

In a video, the men revealed that they were duped by an agent off around Rs 2 lakh each, who sent them to Iraq on the pretext of getting them a work permit in the country.

“We came to Iraq from India after giving Rs 1.5 lakh each to the agent, after coming here the agent again asked for more Rs 50,000 for making Iqama and we paid. Later, we got to know that the agent has cheated us by sending us to Iraq on a visit visa. The agent in Iraq is not responding to us and we are facing crisis here without proper food and water. I request external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj to help us get back to India,” the men said in the video.

Speaking to ANI over the phone, Nizamabad activist Basanth Reddy, who is helping the victims, stated that 15 people from the district had left for Iraq in September 2018 to work there after an agent promised them good jobs.

“The agent Narender had charged around 2 lakh rupees from each individual and sent them to Iraq. The victims are now stranded in Iraq without any facilities. I, along with the families of the victims, have approached Telangana DGP Mahender Reddy, who referred us to Nizamabad Commissionerate,” he said.

Reddy urged the government to help, reiterating that the Indians stranded in Iraq have run out of money and are struggling for life.

Meanwhile, Iraq authorities have imposed fine on the victims for staying back in the Gulf nation despite their visa expiry.

(This story has been published from a wire agency feed without modifications to the text. Only the headline has been changed.)