J&K: BSF officer hugged his dad, attained martyrdom six hours later

General News

TNN | Updated: Jun 14, 2018, 10:33 IST

JAIPUR/ALWAR: Samundra Singh Choudhary was only six hours into his train journey from Jammu to Jaipur when a BSF official broke the news of the demise of his son Jitendra, 34 – posted as assistant commandant with the border force – during a ceasefire violation by Pakistan in Samba district of J&K on Wednesday.
“Barely six hours ago, he had hugged me at Jammu railway station. I got the news of his death when I was still travelling,” Singh said, exhausted by the journey and the wails of his wife, who suffered bouts of unconsciousness.


Since morning, the family’s Rajat Path area house in Jaipur had been teeming with visitors, including residents of far-off colonies who had never known Jitendra or his family, but got to know about his martyrdom only through WhatsApp groups and local news channels.
Samundra Singh looked composed, struggling to hold back tears while narrating how incredibly proud he was in this moment of grief. “Now is the time to take strict and resolute action against Pakistan,” he said.



Jitendra is survived by his wife Renu and three-year-old son Yash. “My son had called me a few days ago and insisted that I visit him in Jammu before he is promoted to the rank of deputy commandant and transferred,” he said. A native of Bharatpur district, the family had moved to Jaipur a decade ago and Jitendra had joined BSF in 2011. A meritorious student, Jitendra had won many debates and competitions, but it was the lure of armed forces that always guided his career.
In Alwar, a pall of gloom descended on the house of BSF constable Hans Raj Gujjar, 28, who had also attained martyrdom in the same firing. He had promised his wife that he would meet their newborn son on Wednesday at their native place. However, his promise remained unfulfilled.
On Wednesday, the family was informed about Gujjar’s demise. The news shocked his entire village which, until Tuesday, was busy preparing for a grand celebration for Gujjar’s newborn. “On June 15, we had organized an event for his son. We were waiting for him to come to Alwar by Wednesday or Thursday. Instead, we are now waiting for his coffin,” said Pritam, a relative. A native of Mugalpur, the martyr is survived by his wife Manju and two kids.
In Sikar, Dabla village was in grief when the news of martyrdom of Ram Niwas Yadav, 52 — posted as assistant sub-inspector with the BSF — broke. Yadav is the third BSF personnel from Rajasthan to have been killed in Pakistani firing on Wednesday.