Two days after seven military personnel were killed in a helicopter crash in Tawang, purported images of their bodies wrapped in plastic sacks and tied up in cardboard surfaced on the internet, triggering an outrage.
This prompted the Army to come out with a statement saying the wrapping of the bodies with local resources was an “aberration” and that the fallen soldiers are always given full military honour.
Former Northern Army commander, Lt Gen (Retd) HS Panag, was one of the first people who took to Twitter to bring attention to the issue. “Seven young men stepped out into the sunshine yesterday to serve their motherland, India. This is how they came home,” tweeted Panag.
Cricketer Gautam Gambhir too took to Twitter to lash out at the manner in which the remains were brought home.
Reacting to the issue, the Army said in a statement that the carriage of the mortal remains in body bags, wooden boxes and coffins will be ensured.
Fallen soldiers (are) always given full military honour. Carriage of mortal remains in body bags, wooden boxes, coffins will be ensured.Indian Army
A statement issued by the Army later said due to constraints of the carriage effort in high-altitude area, helicopters cannot carry full load. It said immediately after the post-mortem at the Guwahati base hospital, the mortal remains were placed in the wooden coffins with full military honours.
Consequent to paying of tributes as per full military honours, mortal remains of all the personnel have been sent to respective next of kin.Army Statement
The photographs were taken when the bodies were in Guwahati, as per an official.
Lt Gen (Retd) Panag said proper military body bags must be used to transport bodies from forward locations until ceremonial coffins were available.
Several people on Twitter also expressed their anguish after the images surfaced. Five IAF personnel, including two pilots, and two army men were killed when the Mi-17 V5 chopper crashed on Friday morning in Tawang in Arunachal Pradesh.
(Breathe In, Breathe Out: Are you finding it tough to breathe polluted air? Join hands with FIT in partnership with #MyRightToBreathe to find a solution to pollution. Send in your suggestions to fit@thequint.com or WhatsApp @ +919999008335)
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)