PALAKKAD: The body of Lt Col Niranjan Kumar, who died when the Air Force base in Pathankot was attacked by terrorists, reached his ancestral home at Elumbalassery on Monday around 6 pm. Thousands of people had gathered to receive the body and pay their last respects. The cremation will take place at 11 am on Tuesday.
The special helicopter of the Air Force with the body landed at the Government Victoria College ground at 4.05 pm. The body was taken to Elumbalassery by road in an ambulance.The family members of Niranjan, who were in the helicopter which flew in from Bangalore, included his father E K Sivarajan, brother Sarath Chandran, sister Bhagyalakshmi, younger brother Sasankan, wife Radhika, daughter Vismaya, father in-law Gopalakrishnan, mother in-law Rajeswari and brother of Radhika, Mahesh.
The body was received at the college ground by his uncles Sethumadhavan and Vidhyadharan apart from other relatives.The officials accompanying the body from Bangalore included a Major General of the National Security Guards Thushar Menon, Air Force Chief Administrative Officer A R Sreenivas and Army Station Commander Shailendra Arya.The body was kept at the college for about half an hour for the public to pay homage before proceeding to Elumbalassery.
Among those who reached the Victoria College ground included MLAs A K Balan, M Hamza, Municipal Chairperson Prameela Shashidharan, District Collector P Marykutty, Additional District Magistrate U Narayanankutty, District Sainik Welfare Officer P K Kuttappan, Indian Sainik Board member Col P Sivashankaran, military officials, Superintendent of Police N Vijayakumar and other elected representatives.At the college ground, a wreath was placed on behalf of KPCC president V M Sudheeran by DCC president C V Balachandran.
District Collector P Marykutty who visited the ancestral house on Monday morning told 'Express' that the administration has made all arrangements for the funeral. The body will be kept for public homage at the K A Upper Primary School at Elambulassery from 7 am. At 11 am, the body will be cremated in the compound of his ancestral house, she said.