Pulwama attack: Braveheart laid to rest amid cries of 'Bharat Mata Ki Jai'

  • | Sunday | 17th February, 2019

Pakistan should be taught a lesson," they said.In Khudawal, chief minister Kamal Nath consoled the grieving family of the martyr. BHOPAL/JABALPUR: CRPF martyr Ashwini Kumar Kaochi, who died in the Pulwama terror attack, was cremated with full state honours in his village, Khudawal, on Saturday. Shouts of 'Bharat Mata Ki Jai' and 'Pakistan Murdabad' rent the air.In Bhopal, thousands of CRPF officers and personnel and citizens took to the streets with candles to mourn the martyrs and demanded revenge for the cowardly attack. The youth of our state have the courage to lay down their lives for the security of our motherland. It is due to the bravery of our soldiers that the enemy is now resorting to cowardly acts like these.

BHOPAL/JABALPUR: CRPF martyr Ashwini Kumar Kaochi, who died in the Pulwama terror attack, was cremated with full state honours in his village, Khudawal, on Saturday. Chief minister Kamal Nath , cabinet ministers and former CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan were among the hundreds who attended the last rites and paid tribute.An honour guard fired a volley to pay respect to the braveheart, who had told his family that he would "return wrapped in the Tricolour one day". Shouts of 'Bharat Mata Ki Jai' and 'Pakistan Murdabad' rent the air.In Bhopal, thousands of CRPF officers and personnel and citizens took to the streets with candles to mourn the martyrs and demanded revenge for the cowardly attack. Emotions ran high among mourners. Jitendra Shukla of Rohit Nagar and shopkeeper Anil Gupta said India has shown enough tolerance and the time has come to take action. "We have a very strong Army. Pakistan should be taught a lesson," they said.In Khudawal, chief minister Kamal Nath consoled the grieving family of the martyr. "Ashwini was a brave soldier and the state is proud of him. The youth of our state have the courage to lay down their lives for the security of our motherland. It is due to the bravery of our soldiers that the enemy is now resorting to cowardly acts like these. The state government is with the Kaochi family and they will be provided benefits of all government schemes," Nath said.The government has announced an assistance of Rs 1 crore, a house and a job to a family member of Ashwini.Thousands had lined the highway along which Ashwini's body was carried, wrapped in Tricolour. His body was flown to Allahabad in the morning and then brought to Sihora town in a CRPF vehicle.Hundreds of vehicles joined the hearse on the highway, many of them turning around and joining up at the spur of the moment. When the convoy reached Sihora town, around 12.30pm, the crowd was so large that they stopped to allow them to pay their last tributes.The massive convoy reached Khudawal around 3.30pm. By then, the small village was packed with those arriving to pay tribute.Former CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan said, “Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said that Army will decide when, where and how the revenge would be taken. Terrorists in Pakistan will have to pay a heavy price for this.”Apart from CM Nath, senior cabinet members Govind Singh, Jeetu Patwari and Tarun Bhanot attended the last rites.Martyr Ashwini Kumar, 30, was posted at 35th Battalion of CRPF.His village has a tradition of sending youths to the armed forces and has three martyrs — one of them was killed in the Uri terror attack.His uncle Khadak Singh recalls how the youngster would say he dreamt of “returning one day, wrapped in Tricolour”.Revenge is the only thing on his family and villagers’ minds, his father, 70-year-old Sukru, had told TOI.“He was not only my son, but the country’s son. He sacrificed his life for country. It is the duty of the country to eliminate the ones responsible for this attack,” Sukru said.Ashwini last visited his family in October-November last year. His family planned to get him married this year. He had called his mother three days ago, and asked her to take care of her health.The first thing he had done after getting his first pay as a CRPF Jawan was to stop his mother from working in a beedi factory.Ashwini’s family’s finances were never good. His father worked as a labourer, so do his three brothers.

If You Like This Story, Support NYOOOZ

NYOOOZ SUPPORTER

NYOOOZ FRIEND

Your support to NYOOOZ will help us to continue create and publish news for and from smaller cities, which also need equal voice as much as citizens living in bigger cities have through mainstream media organizations.


Stay updated with all the Bhopal Latest News headlines here. For more exclusive & live news updates from all around India, stay connected with NYOOOZ.

Related Articles