Ramban: On Thursday, hundreds of people gathered in Kishtwar to say goodbye to Rifleman Ravi Kumar, a native son who died in an encounter in Rajouri on Tuesday.
On Wednesday night, a route was used to transport soldier Ravi Kumar’s body remains to his home hamlet of Vasnauti in Kaligarh Kishtwar.
In a procession this morning, hundreds of people carried his dead remains to the cremation place on the bank of the Chenab River near Hasti, wrapped in the tricolour and transported there in a decorated truck.
In the march, mourners were chanting “Ravi Kumar Amar Rahay.” They shouted anti-Pakistani phrases as the burial procession passed.
The soldiers gave a formal guard of respect at the cremation site while firing cannon salutes. Along with notable people, the Army Brigadier, SSP, DDC, and other top police and civil administration officers and officials attended the wreath-laying event.
In a Tuesday confrontation with militants in the Jammu provincial border area of Rajouri, soldier Ravi Kumar was slain. He served with the Rashtriya Rifles (RR), a counterinsurgency unit.
The troops also shot and killed two terrorists.
Young and old arrived in vast numbers to pay respects to the brave-heart in Kishtwar and participated in the funeral procession. The Kishtwar village was enveloped in sadness while his last rituals were being carried out.
