Jammu, May 30 (KNO): Amid anti-terrorists and anti Pakistan slogans, Circus worker Deepu Kumar, who was gunned down by unknown gunmen South Kashmir’s Anantnag district, was cremated near his native village near Majalta, Udhampur.
As per news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO), the killing of the lone bread-earner, who was looking after a joint family, sparked protests at his native village with locals demanding strict action against the attackers.
Hailing from remote Thial village of Majalta, about 60 kms from the district headquarters, Kumar was a sole breadwinner in a joint family comprising his pregnant wife, ailing father besides blind brother, his wife and two children who are putting up together in a single-storey mud-house on a slope in the village. The couple was expecting their first baby in June this year.
The body of Deepu Kumar, 27, reached Udhampur’s remote Thial village around 8 am for the final rites, with locals raising anti-terrorist slogans and demanding action.
Living in a humble dwelling, the family said he was the sole breadwinner. “I can’t see. My father is visually impaired. He was our only earning hand. Why was he killed,” the victim’s brother asked.
Jammu and Kashmir BJP president Ravinder Raina also presented during rites and termed the killing as unfortunate that has shamed humanity.
Kumar (27), who worked at a circus in the Janglat Mandi area in the south Kashmir district, was shot dead by unknown gunmen when he had gone to the market to buy milk around 8.30 pm on Monday. His body was on Tuesday moved to his remote Thial village in Majalta area of Udhampur district where it was received by villagers amid anti-terrorist sloganeering. The body was later taken to a nearby cremation ground where the last rites were performed. The pyre was lit by Kumar’s nephew in accordance with family tradition and rituals.
“This is a very unfortunate incident which shames humanity. His father is on the death-bed and his elder brother is blind. He was the only bread earner for the family,” Ravinder Raina, who was among several BJP workers who joined the last rites of the deceased. He said the perpetrators of the gruesome crime have done a great injustice to the poor family. “What was his crime for which he was brutally killed? An innocent blood was shed and those who have done this have committed a great sin,” Raina said, adding “the culprits cannot escape the law here and the creator too will not forgive them”.
The BJP leader said he spoke to the Lt Governor and sought adequate compensation for the poor family. “I am hopeful that the government will come out with a proper rehabilitation plan for them”.
The owner of circus claimed that Kashmir was never such un predictable and unsafe before.
“We were here for the past two months. We have been organising shows in Kashmir for several years now. We never felt unsafe before,” Abhi Sharma, the circus owner, said.
Meanwhile, Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha has approved an ex-gratia of Rs 5 lakh for the next of kin of Kumar.
Locals said the Lieutenant Governor’s administration should “go after the attackers”. “The security forces should hunt down the attackers as soon as possible,” a protesting local said.
Reacting to the killing, the Jammu chapter of J-K High Court Bar Association termed it as “dastardly act” and voiced concern about the game-plan of terrorists and their masters across the border in selectively targeting the peace-loving civilians.
Chairing a condolence meeting inside the court complex in Jammu, Bar president Vikram Sharma appreciated the offensive mounted by security forces against the perpetrators of crime to bring them to book.
“We hope such incidents are not allowed to recur and that the terrorism shall soon be wiped out,” he said, urging the government to give a befitting response to those waging war against the country from within and outside.
National Conference vice president Omar Abdullah said he was pained by the news of yet another targeted attack against a civilian. “The murder of Deepak, who worked with a travelling circus to earn an honest living, is an abomination and I condemn this militant attack unreservedly,” Mr. Abdullah said.
Peoples Conference chairman Sajad Lone termed the killing as “an incident of savagery”. “In wonderment how does the killing of a civilian help anybody. May Allah burn in hell those thugs who killed him,” Mr. Lone said.
Chairman Democratic Progressive Azad Party (DPAP) Ghulam Nabi Azad has strongly condemned the killing of Deepu by terrorists in Anantnag. Azad said that terrorism is a menace that needs to be fought by all collectively.
Azad tweeted, “Strongly condemn the heinous act of killing Deepu of Udhampur by terrorists in Anantnag. Terrorism is a menace that needs to be fought by us collectively. It is a curse against humanity!”
Azad expressed solidarity with the victim's family and urged upon the authorities to bring the culprits to justice.
The incident was one of the several targeted killings Jammu and Kashmir witnessed in the recent past. In February, terrorists had killed a Kashmiri Pandit man in Pulwama.
The deceased Sanjay Sharma was working as an armed guard in his village. He was rushed to the hospital where he succumbed to his injuries. In November last year, two labourers hailing from Kannauj district in Uttar Pradesh were killed by terrorists in Shopian. The terrorists had lobbed a grenade in Harmen, Shopian in which two labourers named Monish Kumar and Ram Sagar were injured. They succumbed to their injuries in the hospital—(KNO)