DEHRADUN: As news of BSF officer Rakesh Dobhal's martyrdom in Kashmir reached his Rishikesh home late on Friday noon, shock permeated the family members.
The martyr's parents, wife, and the 11-year-old daughter held on to disbelief for the next few moments hoping this is a false alarm.
Vikas Dobhal, the cousin of the 38-year-old martyr, told The New Indian Express, "We could not simply believe the news but unfortunately it was true. I don't know what to say. This is something no one anticipates."
News of his martyrdom reached his Ganga Nagar colony home at around 2 pm.
Soon after many dignitaries visited the martyred jawans' kin to pay their condolence. Among those was the Assembly speaker Prem Chand Agarwal.
The sub-inspector of the BSF joined the forces in 2004.
The family, friends, and relatives remember him as a brave, honest, and daring man who never shied away from challenges.
A gold medalist at University-level athletics, he was second among his three siblings.
For his daughter Ditya, wife Santoshi, and mother Vimla, the loss is beyond repair and irreversible.
"After his father left us I thought we are going to recover from the loss and looked forward to the future. I pray to God that no mother witness what I did today," said Vimla who broke down while recalling how full of life his son was.
His father who worked as a lab assistant in a local government degree college passed away in 2008 after which his mother got a job as a clerk in the same college.
His brothers -- Dinesh and Mayank -- said their brother was a family beacon who brought honour and pride to the family.
Coming from a humble middle-class background, the officer always preferred hard work, challenges over a comfortable life, recalled his brothers.