Gopal Sharma
JAMMU, May 18: Amidst protests, Ranjit Singh, who was killed in a grenade attack by militants on a liquor shop at Baramulla in Kashmir on Tuesday, was cremated at his native village in Sunderbani in Rajouri district today.
A burqa clad militant walked up to a newly-opened wine shop in Baramulla on late Tuesday evening, dropped a grenade inside through the porthole window, causing an explosion which killed Singh and left three other employees injured.
The other injured employees have been identified as Govardhan Singh, Ravi Kumar, both residents of Billawar in Kathua and Govind Singh, a resident of Kangri village near Sunderbani in Rajouri. Click here to watch video
As the mortal remains of Ranjit Singh reached his home at Bakhar in Sunderbani today, hundreds of mourners gathered there.They placed his body on Jammu-Poonch highway, thereby blocking it and raised slogans against Pakistan sponsored militants, demanding an end to killing of Hindus in Kashmir. However, Singh was later cremated with the intervention of the top officials of the district. A large number of people of the area from all walks of life attended his funeral.
The protesters demanded Rs 25 lakh ex-gratia/relief for the deceased’s family and Government job to one of the family members.
“We want that there should be an end to killing of Hindus in Kashmir valley. Day in and day out, Hindus are killed. First a Kashmir Pandit was killed in his office and now a Dogra Hindu of Rajouri was killed. How long will they kill minority Hindus in Kashmir,”? one of Singh’s kin Surjeet Singh asked.
Ranjit Singh, who was very poor and falling in BPL category, had gone there to earn livelihood but they killed him for “being a Hindu”, he said.
Former Army Captain Hem Raj said “Lieutenant Governor should announce Rs 25 lakh compensation for his family and a Government job to his kin. We will continue to wage struggle for the same,” he added.
J&K BJP chief Ravinder Raina, who attended the cremation, said targeted killings are evil designs of Pakistan to wound Kashmir and the neighbouring country has always shed blood of Kashmiri people.
In Jammu, Bajrang Dal, Shiv Sena, Dogra Front and VHP held protest demonstrations against Pakistan and militants blaming them for selective killings of Hindus in Kashmir.
Amid anti-Pakistan and anti-terrorist sloganeering, they also burnt effigy of Pakistan.
Meanwhile, the Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCI) Jammu condemned unabated killings of minorities in Kashmir Valley and demanded adequate security to ensure that no more life falls prey to terrorism in the Union Territory.
In this context, an emergent meeting of Jammu Chamber was held here under the chairmanship of Arun Gupta, president CCI Jammu.
Gupta said that the situation in Kashmir has turned grim with terrorists carrying out soft killings at their will with miniscule minorities becoming the first target of these violence mongers. He said that grenade attack on a wine shop in Baramulla killing a Hindu youth from Rajouri and injuring three others from Jammu province is testimony to the fact that minority community is not safe in the Valley as terrorists are targeting the vulnerable community because recently a Kashmiri Pandit employee Rahul Bhat was also targeted in broad day light.
Jammu Chamber demanded that the Government should brace-up the security grid and also make beat policing robust to ensure that no civilian, especially the minority community member, remains at risk.
Dr Varun Padha, a renowned social activist condemned continued killing of civilians in Kashmir Valley, terming the situation in the Jammu and Kashmir as grim. In a statement, Padha urged the Central Government and the UT Administration to step up security system in the J&K.
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