Nishikant Khajuria
JAMMU, Feb 21: The supreme sacrifice of Captain Tushar Mahajan of 9-Para, who laid down his life fighting terrorists inside a Government building at Pampore in Pulwama district this evening, has sent a shock wave in his home town Udhampur even as people cherish martyrdom of this son of the soil.
As soon as the news of Captain Tushar’s martyrdom reached Udhampur, a pall of gloom descended over the entire town, particularly at Adarash Colony, residence of Captain Tushar which was being thronged by people of the area as well as senior Army and Police officers to convey their condolences to the bereaved family.
Large number of people had assembled in their house to pay their last respect to the brave son of the soil. According to family members Captain Tushar was fondly called as ‘Chotu’.
Son of Asha Rani and Prof Dev Raj, a retired Principal and Lecturer of Physics, Captain Tushar Mahajan always cherished to be a soldier for taking on terrorists and eliminating them. ” Ever since his childhood, Tushar had made up his mind to join the India Army as he was very fond of fighting terrorists and whenever news of any encounter appeared on the TV, he would use to reiterate his resolve to be a soldier,” said a neighbour of the martyr..
“He was a very dedicated student and always dreamt of joining the Indian army today he has made all of us very proud by sacrificing his life in the line of duty,” a close relative who was present in the house, said.
Before getting selected for National Defence Academy training in 2010, Tushar had completed his schooling from Little Flowers School, KV and APS Udhampur. 24 years old Tushar was unmarried and his only brother works abroad.
Captain Tushar Mahajan attained martyrdom in the line of duty while neutralising terrorists holed up inside the EDI complex in Pampore area of Pulwama district today. Leading from the front, Captain Tushar received four bullet injuries on his person and was rushed to the Army hospital where he succumbed to his injuries in the evening.
Along with him, another young officer from Jind district of Haryana, Captain Pawan Kumar and Lance Naik Om Parkash (32) of Shimla, Himachal Pradesh too sacrificed their lives as the gun fight continued for the second consecutive day to flush out the heavily armed terrorists.
Captain Tushar Mahajan, according to close friends, had joined the Indian Army against the wishes of his parents. His father wanted him to become an engineer like his elder brother but he followed his passion and ignored pleas of his parents.
“Even though there can be no befitting words of reverence for the martyrdom of Udhampur braveheart Cap Tushar Mahajan, the people of India ,particularly of Udhampur, will cherish the memory of his supreme sacrifice for generations to come and take pride in narrating the story of his bravery to their children, ” said Dr Jitendra Singh, Union Minister and Member of Parliament, Udhampur-Doda constituency, in his condolence message.
Soon after receiving the news of Tushar’s martyrdom, Dr Singh got in touch with Udhampur district administration and Army High Command to ensure befitting and respectful last rites for this brave son of the soil. “That is the minimum and that is all we can do in present circumstances,” he told the Excelsior.
Meanwhile, according to father of other martyr Captain Pawan Kumar, he was proud of the sacrifice made by his only child. “I had only one child and I gave him to the Army, to the nation. No father can be prouder,” Rajbir Singh, Captain Pawan’s father, was quoted as saying by an Army spokesman.
For martyr Pawan Kumar, a Jat and a JNU degree holder, all that mattered was love for the country and not calls of “azadi” on the campus or reservation demand by his community members in Haryana.
“Kisiko reservation chahiye to kisiko azadi bhai. Humein kuchh nahin chahiye bhai. Bas apni razai. (Some want reservation and some independence, I don’t want anything, brother, I want only my quilt),” said the 23-year-old captain of the Special Forces, in his last post on the social networking site facebook.
The young para commando had been in the Army for only three years after graduating from the National Defence Academy. Under a tie-up NDA has with JNU.
The army described him as an “inspiring leader”, who in spite of being injured in an earlier anti-terrorist operation, went on to volunteer for more operations.
The young officer belonged to Haryana which is witnessing large-scale violence over the demand by Jats for reservation in government jobs and educational institutions.
His Facebook account gives one a glimpse into his life. He has posted pictures of him with motorbikes and jeeps. One of his profile pictures he posted last year was of his dog Tyson, a young Rottweiler.
Martyr, Om Parkash of Shimla is survived by his parents, wife and two minor daughters, aged 7 and 9 years.
Meanwhile, BJP MLA from Ramnagar, R S Pathania and All India Anti-Terrorist Front chairman Maninder Singh Bitta & State president Bharat Bhandari have also condoled the martyrdom of Capt Tushar Mahajan and lauded his bravery.
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