BENGALURU: A day after a soldier R Narendra was found dead in Jammu and Kashmir’s Anantnag, his parents are crying foul. They have contested the Army’s claim that Narendra, 22, of 8, Madras Regiment, shot himself with his service rifle on Sunday.Pushpa, Narendra’s mother, told Express that her son did not have any reason to kill himself. Narendra, a resident of Rajagopalnagar in Bengaluru, had joined the Army two years ago.Pushpa said she last spoke to him over a video call on Saturday. “He did not say anything about any problem. He spoke for 15 minutes. He was eating with his fellow soldiers then and was very joyful,” she said.
“If my son committed suicide, let the Army officials show us the evidence. We will seek an investigation to ascertain the exact cause of my son’s death. He always took care of his family. He paid for the education of his brother Sharath and sister Bhavani, both of whom are studying in private colleges in the city,” Pushpa added.Narendra’s father Raju, a driver, said: “For years, we had been living in a house with an aluminium sheet as roof. He came to visit us on August 30 and found us a house on lease. He was so happy that we were living in a three-storeyed building.’’
Narendra reported for duty on September 27. “Narendra dreamt of becoming a commando in the Army. How could he have killed himself?” Raju said.“When an Army officer called me to inform about my son’s death, I insisted that the officer verify if it was indeed my son. I was told not to interact with the media,” Raju said.
His last rites will be conducted on Tuesday.