2 min readMurar (kapurthala)Apr 3, 2018 10:27 AM IST
First published on: Apr 3, 2018 at 10:27 AM IST
Cremation of Gobinder Singh at Murar village in Kapurthala Monday (Express Photo)
Even as a four-year wait ended tragically Monday, the family of Gobinder Singh (45), one of those who were slain by IS in Mosul, Iraq, got just 29 minutes with his mortal remains at Murar village in Kapurthala district Monday. The remains reached his place at 6:27 pm and the cremation took place at 6:56 pm.
“We wanted the cremation done on Monday today itself because there is no point in keeping the remains…. the last rites were delayed by four years already,” said Gobinder’s brother Davinder Singh.
A team from the district administration was at the cremation ground till the final rites were completed. The family was handed over some documents, including the death certificate and DNA test report.
Also read | ‘This one night’s wait seems longer than the four years’
The bodies were brought to India from Mosul on a special Air Force One aircraft. (Express Photo)
Earlier, around 2:40 pm, the family got a call from Amritsar airport from Davinder Singh, who had gone to receive the mortal remains of his brother and informed that special charted plane carrying the remains had landed at the airport.
Also read | Tears and grief at end of four-year wait: Caskets from Mosul flown home to Punjab
Davinder Singh and Gajinder Singh, both younger brothers of Gobinder, had left early in the morning for Amritsar along with a team of Kapurthala administration.
Their father, Baljinder Singh (74), an ex-servicemen, recalled the day his son had left for Iraq to ensure a better livelihood for his children despite the dangerous situation prevailing there. “He called us on June 14, 2014, and told us about the situation. We asked him to come back but then he got trapped,” he said.
Gobinder’s widow, an inconsolable Amarjit Kaur, said he had gone there “hoping for a better life for us but we have now met the worst possible fate.”
Cremation of Gobinder Singh at Murar village in Kapurthala Monday (Express Photo)
The bodies were brought to India from Mosul on a special Air Force One aircraft. (Express Photo)
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