Three days after his vacation ended, jawan's family waits for the coffin
Gorakhpur/Kannauj (UP): Just three days ago Pankaj Tripathi was at home in his village, wrapping up a two-month vacation with his wife Rohini and a three-year-old son.
On Friday morning, the family awaited the return of the CRPF jawan, expecting him in a coffin wrapped in the tricolour.
The 35-year-old is among the 40 Central Reserve Police Force personnel killed Thursday in one of the deadliest terror attacks in Kashmir, soon after his return to his unit.
The family, and the village of Harpur in Uttar Pradesh's Maharajganj, learnt of the loss through a phone call Thursday.
Some officer informed us about my son on the phone. No doubt we are proud that my son gave his life for the motherland but the government should take tough steps against the attackers, his father Om Prakash Tripathi said.
The time for talking is up, it's time to take revenge, he added.
He said Pankaj Tripathi had spent two months with the family before returning to Kashmir.
Villagers said many families did not cook food in the morning. People were out in the streets, shouting slogans that called for revenge.
Shaheed Pankaj amar rahe. Badla lo, badla lo, Pakistan se badla lo, they shouted.
The jawan's brother Shubham Tripathi said, When he came here on vacation he said he will be getting transferred to Delhi and will come again in April.
I lost my brother and nothing can make up this loss. The leaders enjoy a lot of security and soldiers are kept in the front. They are not given freedom to take action against such acts, he said.
The scene was similar in Azan Sukhsenpur village in Terwa area of Kannauj district.
Pradeep Singh had also come home this month to visit his wife and two daughters. He left on February 10 to rejoin his unit, and become part of the convoy targeted by the terrorists.
In Kanpur Dehat's Nonari village, Shyam Babu's family was told his body was expected to arrive Saturday afternoon.
His wailing mother Kailashi said, I was waiting for his call when I heard about his martyrdom on television.
She said her son last talked with his wife over the phone on Wednesday and had promised to call again on Thursday.
Angry family members demanded that the country should teach Pakistan a lesson. What is the Indian government waiting for, Ruby, the jawan's wife, said.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
UP Cong chief Ajay Rai hospitalised after fainting, stable
Lucknow (PTI): Uttar Pradesh Congress president Ajay Rai was hospitalised here after he fell unconscious due to low sodium levels, party leaders said on Saturday.
They said he was admitted to Medanta Hospital on Friday evening and is stable.
"Ajay Rai was admitted to Medanta Hospital in Lucknow at around 6 pm on Friday after he fell unconscious as his sodium levels had dropped. He fell unconscious at his residence in Lucknow. For the entire day, he was engaged in party programmes and had also gone to the airport," Uttar Pradesh Congress spokesperson Anshu Awasthi told PTI.
Congress in-charge of Uttar Pradesh Avinash Pande told PTI, "Now, he (Ajay Rai) is stable and I am also reaching Lucknow."
Medanta Hospital Director Dr Rakesh Kapoor told PTI that Rai collapsed at his home on Friday evening and was subsequently admitted to the hospital's emergency ward.
Medical examinations revealed that Rai was suffering from a sodium deficiency and elevated blood pressure. Doctors administered immediate treatment and he is doing significantly better now, Kapoor said.
A team of doctors is monitoring his health. Rai is conversing with others and his condition is stable, he added.
In a post on X late Friday night, Prime Minister Narendra Modi wished Rai a speedy recovery.
Rai hails from Varanasi and had contested the 2024 Lok Sabha elections against Modi from the parliamentary constituency. The Congress appointed him as the Uttar Pradesh unit chief in 2023.
