“How will we survive?”: Family of seven loses sole breadwinner in Poonch shelling
Poonch: The family of Chowdhary Mohammad Akram, a 50-year-old daily wage labourer from Sukh Khata village in Poonch, has been left in despair after he was killed in Pakistani shelling on May 7.
Akram, the sole breadwinner for his family of seven, sustained fatal injuries when a shell landed near his home amid heavy shelling on border areas, as reported by The New Indian Express on Monday.
His wife, Farida Bi, recounted the terrifying moment when explosions rocked their area. “As Akram reached near the gate, a shell landed near our house and exploded with a big bang," TNIE quoted her as saying.
Akram suffered multiple splinter injuries and was rushed to the District Hospital in Poonch by neighbours. Doctors declared him brought dead. Akram’s final rites were held in his native village, attended by grieving relatives and neighbours.
His elder daughter, Afreen Firdous, who was also injured, was treated and later discharged.
His death has left his family without any means of livelihood as Akram was the sole earner of the family. Farida Bi shared that they were surviving on her husband’s daily earnings.
“I have small kids and they are searching for their father. The killing of Akram has brought us to the road,” she shared.
Akram leaves behind his wife, four daughters, two sons, and two brothers, who have their own families. “We all are in the labour force. We survive on a hand-to-mouth basis,” TNIE quoted Akram’s brother Mohammad Bashir as saying.
He said Akram’s death is a massive loss for the family, especially for his children, as he was deeply committed to providing them with a good education.
Bashir appealed to the government to support the bereaved family by offering a job to the widow and ensuring the education of the children is not disrupted. He questioned how the family would manage school fees and other expenses if the government fails to step in and provide support.
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Woman, 2 sons found dead in Delhi home; suicide suspected
New Delhi (PTI): Three members of a family were found dead inside their home in southeast Delhi's Kalkaji on Friday, with police suspecting it to be a case of suicide, officials said.
Police said the incident came to light around 2.47 pm when a police team reached the premises to execute a court order related to possession of the property. When repeated knocks went unanswered, the staff used a duplicate key to open the door.
Inside, officers found Anuradha Kapoor (52) and her sons, Ashish Kapoor (32) and Chaitanya Kapoor (27), hanging from the ceiling, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Southeast) Hemant Tiwari said in a statement. All three were declared dead.
A handwritten note was recovered from the room, suggesting the family had been struggling with depression.
"The handwritten note indicates emotional distress faced by the family due to which the family may have taken the extreme step," the officer said.
The bodies have been shifted to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) mortuary for post-mortem and other legal formalities under Section 194 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), police said.
Residents of the neighbourhood said they were shocked to learn about the deaths, adding that the family kept largely to themselves.
Pankaj Kashyap, a resident of Girinagar, said he learnt about the deaths while leaving for work. "I live and work here and was leaving for work when I saw many people standing outside and talking. That is how I got to know that three people had committed suicide. I also saw several police vehicles outside, but I do not know much beyond that," he said.
Baldev, another neighbour, said the family had been living in the newly constructed house for around two years. "We only knew that a mother and her two children lived there. They had moved into the newly built house around two years ago. We did not interact much with them. Today we heard that all three have committed suicide, and whatever we know is based on what people here are saying," he said.
Another neighbour, Ramesh Kumar, claimed the family had earlier attempted suicide.
"About fifteen to twenty days ago, the two sons in the family had attempted suicide and police and ambulances had come. That was when I first got to know who they were. I do not recognise them by face, but we saw the ambulances and police take the two sons that day. Today again we saw ambulances and police arriving, so everyone came out to see what had happened. I do not know how long they had been living here, but this is all we know," he said.
Police said they are examining the family's financial condition, social circumstances, and other factors that may have contributed to the incident. Further investigation is underway.
