Maharashtra Village Grieves Soldier Killed in J&K Encounter

Photo used for representational purposes.

(Photo: Reuters)

A pall of gloom descended on Mundhe village in Maharashtra's Satara district, following the death of Indian Army soldier Naik Sandip Raghunath Sawant, who was killed during a counter-insurgency operation in Jammu and Kashmir's Nowshera sector on Wednesday, 1 January.

Sawant (29) and Rifleman Arjun Thapa Magar (25) were killed when the army foiled an infiltration bid by heavily armed terrorists along the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir’s Rajouri district on New Year’s day.

Sawant and his wife were blessed with a baby girl recently and he had come home for his daughter's naming ceremony, having returned to his posting just 15 days ago, one of the deceased soldier's relatives said.

A day before the incident, Sawant had spoken to his elder brother, he said, adding that the martyred soldier had joined the Indian Army in 2011.

The tragic news on the very first day of the new year had shocked the village, sarpanch Ramesh Lavate said.

According to Indian Army sources, Sawant's remains will be flown in from Delhi to Pune on Thursday night and will be brought to his native village thereafter.