Barnog village in Mandi district of Himachal Pradesh was enveloped in grief on Tuesday as the mortal remains of Junior Commissioned Officer (JCO) Naib Subedar Rakesh Kumar were brought home for his last rites. Amid chants of “Jai Hind” and emotional scenes, family members, friends, and villagers paid their respects to the brave soldier, who was killed in action during an encounter with terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir’s Kishtwar district on Sunday.
A Soldier’s Unfulfilled Dream
Rakesh Kumar, who had been planning to rebuild his monsoon-damaged house, leaves behind a family that had been awaiting his return. “Our ten-room house was damaged during the monsoon last year, and we were living in a rented house. Rakesh had promised to start the construction of a new house in January,” said Kumar’s brother, Karam Singh, recalling his last conversation with the fallen soldier.
Kumar is survived by his wife, Bhanupriya, his children – 13-year-old daughter Yashshwini and 7-year-old son Pranav – as well as his 90-year-old mother, Bhati Devi.
On Monday afternoon, Kumar’s mortal remains were flown to Kangni helipad by a special Army helicopter. From there, they were taken to Ner Chowk Medical College and later transported to his native village for the final farewell on Tuesday morning.
Details of the Encounter
Rakesh Kumar, a member of the Army’s 2 Para unit, was killed in action, while three other soldiers sustained injuries during a fierce gunfight with terrorists. The encounter occurred after a group of militants, responsible for kidnapping and killing two Village Defence Guards (VDGs) on Thursday, was tracked by the Army in the Kishtwar district.
Following the incident, a massive combing operation was launched in the Kuntwara and Keshwan areas of Jammu, with Special Forces commandos deployed to hunt down the perpetrators, believed to be a group of three to four militants. The Kashmir Tigers, a faction of the Pakistan-based terror outfit Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM), claimed responsibility for the attack on the Village Defence Guards.
The incident is part of an escalating pattern of violence in the region. This year, Jammu has seen the loss of 16 security personnel, 10 civilians, and three VDGs in various attacks. In response, security forces have neutralised 13 terrorists in the area. Meanwhile, in Kashmir, nine security personnel and 15 civilians have been killed in terror attacks, while 24 terrorists have been eliminated by security forces.
The tragic loss of JCO Rakesh Kumar highlights the ongoing sacrifice of India’s armed forces in their mission to maintain security and stability in the region.