vinder Sood

Palampur, August 8

Rulia Ram Walia, father of Maj Sudheer Walia who had attained martyrdom while fighting militants in Jammu and Kashmir nearly 20 years ago, has decided to return the Ashoka Chakra awarded to his son.

He said both state and Central governments had failed to acknowledge the supreme sacrifice made by his son and had not installed his statue in the town or at their native village Banuri.

Rulia Ram along with his daughter Thursday called on Palampur SDM Pankaj Sharma and submitted him a written representation in this regard. He said his repeated visits to ministers, MLAs and other state officials had proved futile.

Talking to The Tribune outside the SDM office, Rulia Ram alleged that the state and Centre had no respect for the martyrs. “Whenever any soldier attains martyrdom, the state government makes tall claims of providing all kind of help at the time of cremation. However, no one later comes forward to fulfill these. Like him, there are many other families that have been fighting for the completion of projects announced in the name of their kin who sacrificed their lives for the nation,” said a teary-eyed Rulia Ram.

Gone weaker with age wearing thick glasses, Rulia Ram said he had lost his son when he was just 28-year-old. Every time, they were given false assurances, but nothing was done on the ground to install a statue in the memory of his son.

He said Palampur had lost several great soldiers to militancy, including Capt Vikram Batra and Maj Som Nath, who were posthumously honoured with the highest gallantry award.

Maj Sudheer Walia’s father is also a retired Army man. Gen VK Malik (retd) in his book “From Surprise to Victory” on the Kargil War had devoted a full chapter on Maj Sudheer Walia.

He highlighted how Sudheer pursued his dream of joining the Army from his childhood days. He had cleared the NDA exam in his first attempt.