‘War or No War, We’ve Already Lost’: Kin of Jawan Killed in Pakistani Shelling

When The Quint visited 25-year-old Sunil Kumar's family in Jammu's Trewa, the village was in total blackout.

On 11 May, all of Trewa resonated with cries of “Shaheed Sunil Kumar Amar Rahe” as a military contingent escorted the funeral procession of Rifleman Kumar.

When The Quint visited the family on 12 May, the village was in total blackout.

(Photo: Himanshi Dahiya)

The ceasefire between India and Pakistan on 10 May came a few hours too late for 64-year-old Yashpal Kumar and his family in Jammu’s Trewa village — a small hamlet barely a few kilometres from the border.

Earlier that day, around 5.30 am, Yashpal’s 25-year-old son Sunil Kumar, a rifleman in the Indian Army, succumbed to his injuries after he was critically injured in Pakistani shelling at the Abdullian Post in the RS Pura sector.

“Since this conflict started, he (Sunil) called us everyday and told us to move to a safer place, away from the border — until one day he didn’t,” Yashpal recollected, as his eyes slowly welled up.

On 11 May, all of Trewa resonated with cries of “Shaheed Sunil Kumar Amar Rahe” as a military contingent escorted the funeral procession of Rifleman Kumar.

When The Quint visited the family on 12 May, the village was in total blackout. Additionally, a pall of gloom settled over the Kumar house as approximately 20 men and women sat in mourning in two dimly lit rooms.

(Photo: Himanshi Dahiya)

‘Always Wanted to Join the Army’

In another room, Sunil’s mother Sudesh Devi was inconsolable. She broke into tears every few minutes as a group of women tried to keep her calm.

All questions asked of her had only one answer — “Mera beta chala gaya (My son is gone)!”

(Photo: Himanshi Dahiya)

It was then that her daughter-in-law Sheetal stepped in. “Sunil bhaiya was the youngest of three brothers. Everybody in the family loved him a lot,” she said.

Both of Sunil’s elder brothers serve in the Army. Their father, too, is a retired Army personnel.

“As a child, he would wear my uniform and run around the house. Then he would go to his mother and ask her, ‘mummy main kaisa lag raha hun?’” Yashpal recalled as he spoke about Sunil’s ambition to join the army.

'Will War Victory Bring My Son Back?'

The announcement of ceasefire between the two countries has resulted in mixed reactions from people across India. While those living in districts along the western border have welcomed the move, many in other parts of the country called it a “missed opportunity” to avenge the Pahalgam terrorist attack.

For Sunil’s family, however, war between the two countries is a non-issue now. “War or no war, my family has already lost,” Yashpal exclaimed. “Will a war victory bring my son back?” he questioned.

(Photo: Himanshi Dahiya)

Sunil’s sister-in-law Sheetal, however, felt that there is a need to “teach Pakistan a lesson” so that there are no more Sunils being killed on the frontlines.

“Nobody wants a war but what do you do when a country doesn’t want to learn? Today it’s someone from our family, tomorrow it will be someone else. We need to find a solution to this problem,” she said.