Colonel killed in Manipur ambush cremated

Earlier in the day, a special IAF plane carrying the bodies of the officer, his wife and son, landed at an airstrip in Raigarh. The town observed a spontaneous bandh as a large number of people gathered to receive the bodies.

From the airstrip, the coffins were taken in an open flower-decked truck to Colonel Tripathi’s home. The vehicle was followed by a large number of people on two-wheelers and foot. The mortal remains were then kept at Ramleela ground for the public to pay homage and from there they were taken to the crematorium near the circuit house.

Assam Rifles personnel paid floral tributes and accorded a guard of honour to the officer. Chhattisgarh Higher Education Minister Umesh Patel, Raigarh BJP MP Gomti Sai and senior officials were also present.

The mortal remains of Colonel Tripathi and his wife were consigned to flames while their son was buried at the crematorium. The Colonel’s younger brother, Anay Tripathi, a Lieutenant Colonel posted in Shillong, lit the funeral pyre.

Grandson of Kishori Mohan Tripathi, one of the members of the Constitutent Assembly of India, Col Tripathi was commissioned as a lieutenant in Kumaon Regiment in Ranikhet in 2001. He was posted in Manipur.

Col Tripathi’s father Subhash Tripathi is a the editor of a Hindi weekly based out of Raigarh and his mother Aasha is a social worker.