Srinagar: Two brothers of slain rifleman Aurangzeb, who was abducted and killed by militants on his way home for Eid last year, joined the Indian Army, fulfilling the family’s pledge to keep his legacy alive.
On Monday, Mohammed Tariq (22) and Mohammed Shabbir (18) joined the territorial army unit and “vowed to do whatever it takes to make the forces proud".
Aurangzeb, who was part of the South Kashmir based 44 Battalion Rashtriya Rifles, was waylaid by militants and subsequently killed few kilometres away from his residence. His bullet-riddled body was found at a village in Pulwama, hours after he had left his unit in Shopian to join his family in Rajouri for Eid celebrations. He was part of Major Rohit Shukla's team that gunned down Hizbul Mujahideen terrorist Sameer Tiger.
The militants had released a video on social media that was purported for the local officers, threatening them to stop participating in counter-insurgency operations. The period also saw militants abducting family members of cops to build pressure on them. Consequently, the Kashmir had issued an advisory to cops asking them to avoid visiting their homes.
Mohammad Hanief, the father of Aurangzeb, told reporters that he was living to fulfil his promise of sending his sons to the Army.
"My sons have joined the army. I had told the Raksha Mantri and top officers of the Indian Army that all my sons would wear the uniform forever and here you are, two have joined already,'' he said. Raaj Begum, their mother, echoed the same thoughts.
The former army jawan recently joined the BJP on a day when PM Modi was touring Jammu and Kashmir for an election campaign.
“My family has served the Indian army since forever and would continue to do so. It is a legacy that we will continue to follow,” Hanief said, adding that Aurangzeb's death had in fact made their resolve stronger to join the army. '
“It does not matter whether I am in BJP, but joining the army is an ideological decision, not political,” he said.
His eldest son Mohammed Qasim is serving the Kashmir valley and two younger sons, Zaffar Iqbal (17) and Aasim (15), too, have shown a proclivity to don the olive green.
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