Show us DNA proof, say victims’ families
Grieving kin demand that one member of every victim’s family should be given a govt job on compassionate grounds along with compensation
BHOEWAL(AMRITSAR): The families of 27 workers from Punjab, who were among the 39 Indians that were abducted by the Islamic State (IS) in 2014 and declared dead by the Centre on Tuesday, demanded on Wednesday that the government hand over the DNA test reports of the deceased to them.
“First of all, the government must provide evidence. We also want the government to tell us the date of the killings. Without any proof, how can we believe their (government’s) statement?,” said Gurpinder Kaur, sister of Manjinder Singh of Amritsar, who was among the Indian workers killed in Iraq.
Union minister of external affairs Sushma Swaraj told the House on Tuesday that DNA tests have confirmed that 39 Indian workers who were missing in Iraq since 2014 have been killed.
The families of victims from Amritsar and Batala assembled at Manjinder’s house in Bhoewal village, about 30 km from Amritsar, and accused the central government of ‘keeping them in the dark’.
“During the past four years, the Centre repeatedly gave us assurance that our kin are alive. They also showed us some letters of authorities in Iraq. Now, they have suddenly declared them dead,” said Manish Kumar, brother of another victim Harish Kumar of Batala.
“When we asked authorities to tell us the date of the killing, we were told that the DNA does not reveal the date,” he added.
Swaraj said on Tuesday that she understood the families may be anguished or even angry given what they have been through, but said that the government had left no stone unturned to find the missing Indians and that it had “not kept anyone in the dark.”
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Government must provide evidence. We also want it to tell us the date of the killings. Without any proof, how can we believe their (government) statement? GURPINDER KAUR, sister of Manjinder Singh, one of the victims
COMPENSATION CALL
The grieving families also demanded that one member of each victim family should be given a government job on compassionate grounds, besides adequate compensation.
Gurpinder said the financial condition of all the families was bad as most of the men killed were the sole breadwinners. “The government should do something for our future. The families not only need compensation, but also a government job”.
She also handed over a memorandum of demands to Manish Gulati, newly-appointed chairperson of Punjab Mahila Commission, who met the families to express condolence.
AMRITSAR FAUX PAS
The families of two men, who were among 39 Indians killed in Iraq, reached the Sri Guru Ram Dass Jee International Airport in Amritsar on Wednesday to receive their mortal remains as officials had allegedly told them a day earlier that they could receive their loved ones’ remains from the airport the next day.
However, the family members had to return empty handed as the government was yet to ensure the return of the deceased’s mortal remains from Iraq’s Mosul.
Kashmir Chand, paternal uncle of Parminder Kumar , and Bhupinder Singh, brother of Jasbir Singh said they reached the airport at 10am.
Parminder and Jasbir were among 39 Indian workers whose bodies were found in a mass grave in Iraq. They were taken hostage by the IS when it overran Iraq’s second largest city Mosul in 2014.
Kashmir said soon after hearing the news of the deaths, he along with his family members reached Parminder’s house.
He said the Nawanshahr deputy commissioner (DC) and (SSP) came to meet the family late Tuesday and told them to receive Parminder’s body from the Amritsar airport next morning.