POONCH: On May 7, Ranjit Singh, 48, was standing near a shop and talking to his immediate neighbour and namesake, Ranjit Singh, who was on the balcony of the house near the Syndicate area of Poonch.
Both of them were discussing the night-long shelling by Pakistani troops in the border areas, including Poonch after 'Operation Sindoor'.
Below the balcony, the shop was closed and its shutters were down, and inside the shop, Ranjit’s brother, Amrik Singh, was arranging things.
At around 7.45 am, a shell fired by Pakistani troops landed in the area, close to both of them and exploded with a big bang injuring the duo, one on the road and another on the balcony. The splinters of the artillery shell also pierced the shutter of the closed shop and hit Amrik, who was present inside.
Both Ranjit, who was on the road, and Amrik sustained critical injuries while Ranjit, who was on the balcony, sustained splinter injuries in right arm.
“The explosion caused fear and panic and nobody came out, and everybody was confined to their homes. Despite the blood oozing out from my arm, I and my 8-year-old nephew put both of them in a vehicle and rushed them to the nearby District Hospital, where both were declared brought dead,” said Amrik’s brother Ranjit.
The doctors at the hospital provided Ranjit a first aid treatment for his injured arm. "They said that they don't have a facility to treat me here and asked me to go to another hospital," said Ranjit.
As the shelling stopped, the community members and locals rushed to the residences of the two slain persons and made arrangements for their final rites.
Ranjit was unmarried and left behind seven brothers and sisters.
“He was younger than all of us and was very affectionate. He had gone outside to check what had happened last night, and a shell landed when he was talking to the neighbour. Both my brother Ranjit and neighbour Amrik, who was in the closed shop, died on spot,” said Rajinder Singh, brother of the deceased.
He said the shelling took place in Poonch town for the first time, and it caused many casualties.
“Even war has some principles, but in this brief war, no principles were followed. In the war, the civilian areas were never targeted, but here the Pakistani troops targeted civilian areas with artillery shells and other ammunition, causing civilian casualties and property damage,” Rajinder said.
For Amrik’s brother Ranjit, the situation was more miserable as he was not only in mourning but was admitted to the Government Medical College hospital, Jammu, for three days.
“In GMC Jammu, doctors operated on my injured arm and took out the shells and performed multiple surgeries. I remained admitted in the hospital for three days and returned only a few days back,” he said.
Amrik has left behind a widow, two daughters, a son and two brothers.
One of Amrik’s relatives, Hardeva Singh, said people are talking about war, but nobody is talking about the border residents, who are the first victims of war.
“There should never be war. The war should be a last resort, as it brings death and destruction. The issues should be resolved through talks only,” he said.
“Despite normalcy returning and a ceasefire on the border, we are still apprehensive and we still live in fear. We don’t have confidence in this temporary ceasefire as it can break anytime,” he said.