Jawan cremated with full military honours

ALAPPUZHA: The body of slain soldier of the Assam Rifles Anilkumar alias Unni was cremated with full military honours on his house premises in Karuvatta on Wednesday night.

His elder son Ananthakrishnan lit the funeral pyre at 9.30 pm

Thousands of villagers from Karuvatta and nearby villages thronged the house to have a last glimpse of the slain jawan.

The Pangode unit of the Madras Regiment of the Army gave the final salute to Anilkumar who laid the life for the country in an encounter with the Naga militants.

Earlier, his body was kept at his ancestral house ‘Kalathil Veettil’ in Thakazhi Chirayakom for enabling his aging father Janardhan Nair and mother Vijayamma to pay homage.

Heart-rending scenes were witnessed when Vijayamma, an Alzheimer’s patient who had been bedridden for the last 20 years, was shown the body.

Wreaths were placed on behalf of the State Government by Alappuzha Additional District Magistrate Vijaya Bhaskar and Chengannur RDO P.S.Velayudhan.