Bhagwant Mann announces martyr status and statue, day after Army said Agniveer died by suicide

Amritpal Singh, who was serving with a battalion of Jammu and Kashmir Rifles in Poonch sector, died on October 11. He was cremated on Friday. The Army has said that he committed suicide while on sentry duty and that military honours were not extended to his funeral as deaths arising out of self-inflicted injuries are not given such honours.

The Army also asserted that it does not differentiate among soldiers based on whether they joined the force prior to or after the implementation of the Agnipath scheme.

Mann said that the state government recognises the “irreparable loss” to the nation and particularly to Amritpal’s family and a “statue in the memory of the martyr” will be installed at his native village.

Expressing displeasure over the Army not giving a guard of honour to Amritpal Singh, the CM said, “Such kind of discrimination will prove to be dangerous…it will hurt the morale of the Army personnel.”

“It is truly unfortunate that his sacrifice, in the line of duty, has not been recognized as that of a martyr, setting a concerning precedent,” Mann said, adding the state government will accord Amritpal a status of martyr.

Mann said it was shameful that for the first time the body of a soldier was brought in a private ambulance which is an insult to him. It is even more unfortunate that the Army declared Amritpal’s martyrdom as a suicide, which, he said, was like rubbing salt into the wounds of the his family.

“A courageous soldier who embarks on a duty with the commitment to lay down his life for the country can never commit suicide. It is more than an insult saying that he committed suicide. He was taking care of his entire family,” said Mann.

If martyrs were to be treated in this manner, it might dissuade parents from sending their children to the army, he said.

No matter what policy the Centre adopts towards the martyrs of the country, the Punjab government is committed to honouring the families and supreme sacrifices of all brave sons of the state, he said.

Strongly opposing the Agniveer scheme, Mann said it was an insult to the contribution of the brave soldiers and the Central government should reconsider it. He said that jobs of army personnel recruited under the Agniveer scheme should be regularized. He said the state government will impress upon the Union government to roll back the Agniveer scheme which is “grave insult of the brave soldiers.”

Mann also visited the house of Parvinder Singh, the soldier who laid down his life at Kargil in Jammu and Kashmir. At Parvinder Singh’s residence at Chhajli in Sangrur, Mann handed over a cheque of Rs 1 crore to his family as a mark of respect, the statement said.