J-K: Army Chief Bipin Rawat pays visit to slain Rifleman Aurangzeb’s family

Army Chief General Bipin Rawat expressing condolences to Mohammad Latif, father of slain Rifleman Aurangzeb who was kidnapped and killed by militants in Jammu and Kashmir's Shopian district


The Army Chief General Bipin Rawat on Monday flew to the native village of slain Rifleman Aurangzeb in the Poonch district and assured his father, Mohammad Latif, that the “supreme sacrifice” of his son would not go in vain and his killers would be brought to justice.

General Rawat flew to Aurangzeb’s native village Salani just near the Line of Control (LoC) and spent about 45 minutes with the family.

Rifleman Aurangzeb was abducted and killed by militants in Kashmir on 14 June. Aurangzeb’s mutilated body was found in Pulwama district of south Kashmir.

While assuring all possible assistance to the family, the Army Chief said to the family that the supreme sacrifice rendered by the brave son of India will not go in vain.

Aurangzeb was abducted allegedly by militants belonging to Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) and Hizbul Mujahideen (HM) on 14 June while he was on his way home to celebrate Eid with his family. Aurangzeb belonged to 4 Jammu and Kashmir Light Infantry and was attached with the 44 Rashtriya Rifles for anti-terrorist operations in South Kashmir.

On Friday, a video of surfaced on social media, in which the militants can be heard grilling Aurangzeb about his army posting and responsibilities.

In the 1.15 minutes video, another terrorist is heard asking Aurangzeb whether he was in Major Rohit Shukla’s team that eliminated Sameer Tiger. Aurangzeb, who is seen having been made to lie down, replied in affirmative and said that he was among those soldiers who shot Sameer Tiger.

During his visit to the forward areas, the Army Chief extorted the troops to continue to work with zeal and dedication to overcome the challenges posed by terrorism, enemy and weather.

He commended the synergy between all security agencies and civil administration in Jammu and Kashmir.

The Army Chief General, during his visit to forward areas, also interacted with the soldiers and complemented them for their professionalism, selfless commitment and loyalty.

General Rawat visited forward areas in Jammu and Kashmir and was briefed by Lt Gen Saranjeet Singh, GOC White Knight Corps, on the prevailing security situation.

Lt Gen Ranbir Singh, Army Commander, Northern Command accompanied him during his visit.