Agniveer Amritpal Singh died by suicide
As the fifth phase of voting draws near, a newspaper clipping is circulating on X (formerly Twitter), stating, “Agniveer’s death, the army did not salute, said – he does not have the status of martyr.” The article refers to the death of 19-year-old Amritpal Singh, who lost his life last year while on duty in Poonch, Jammu and Kashmir. The excerpt from the shared newspaper suggests that the army did not give a guard of honor to Agniveer Jawan Amritpal Singh. Users are sharing this newspaper clipping calling the army’s action an insult to the martyr.
Fake news peddler, Neha Singh Rathore, who has been actively sharing misinformation since the start of the election wrote, “The fourth phase of voting is going on today. You haven’t forgotten, have you? Have to remember this! The martyrdom of the soldiers is being rejected. Is this patriotism?” (Archived link)
Communist Ashok Kumar Pandey wrote, “Serving in the army was always considered a matter of honour, the Agniveer Scheme took away that honour. No permanent job, no respect for martyrs Recruitment of Agniveer means insult to the soldier.” (Archived link)
Troll account Sandeep Chaudhary Commentary wrote, “The army did not salute the Agniveer on his death and said that he does not have the status of a martyr! Unemployed youth and their parents must read.” (Archived link)
Also Read: Yet Once Again Muhammad Zubair Spreads Misinformation, This Time on Muslim Reservations
During our fact-check research, with a relevant keyword search on Google, we found a report published by Amar Ujala on October 11, 2023. According to the report, constable (Agniveer) Amritpal Singh was on duty as a sentry near the LOC in the Mankot area of Mendhar sub-division of Poonch district. During this time he died due to a bullet injury. While investigating the case, the police had said that the cause of death is being confirmed whether it was due to accidental firing, suicide or any other reason.
Furthermore, the report by Dainik Jagran stated the same that Agniveer Amritpal Singh was shot while on duty and died on the spot. Police were investigating the reason for his death.
After this, we found a post on the official X account of the 16th Corps of the Indian Army ‘White Knight Corps’. This post dated 14 October 2023 reads, “The death of Agniveer Amritpal Singh on 11 October 23 is an unfortunate incident. Amritpal died due to a self-inflicted bullet injury while on duty in the Rajouri sector. Due to this, he was seriously injured. The mortal remains of the junior commissioned officer along with four other ranks were taken home in a civil ambulance. Army soldiers also participated with him in the last rites. Since the cause of death was self-inflicted injury. In such a situation, the last rites were performed as per the current policy, in which no guard of honour or military funeral procedure was done. The Indian army expresses its deepest condolences to the bereaved family.”
Additionally, a post was found on the official X account of the Indian Army. In this post of October 15, 2023, it was clarified that a guard of honour was not given at Amritpal’s funeral because this honour is not given in case of death due to self-inflicted injuries.
The Indian Army has stated that in the event of a soldier’s death due to suicide or self-inflicted injury, the soldier is given due respect regardless of his mode of entry into the army. However, as per the army Order 1967 such cases are not entitled to military last rites. This policy is being followed continuously without any discrimination. According to figures released by the army, 100-140 soldiers have died every year since 2001. These deaths are due to suicide/self-inflicted injuries. In similar cases, military funerals were not permitted. Apart from financial assistance for the last rites, assistance is given according to the rank of the deceased.
As Indian Army has mentioned in the above post that Guard of Honor is not given in case of death by suicide, we tried to find similar cases where army refused to extend guard of honor.
During research, we first found a report published on TV9 Bharatvarsh on March 26, 2022. According to this report, constable Dhananjay Yadav, a resident of Gorakhpur, Uttar Pradesh, had died under suspicious circumstances. The army said that Dhananjay Yadav had committed suicide while his family members said that he was martyred in a terrorist attack. In this case, the army had refused to give a guard of honour. After which the family members kept the dead body on the road and blocked it. Arson and stone pelting were also done. However, after violent protests by family members, Dhananjay Yadav was cremated with military honours.
Furthermore, another report published by Zee News on 26 August 2023 said that soldier Karan Singh, a resident of Churu, Rajasthan, had committed suicide. After this, the family refused to take the body with demands like granting martyr status to the soldier and performing the last rites with a guard of honour. After this, the army called the family of Karan Singh to Kolkata and assured them of cooperation in regarding the incident on the issue of a Guard of Honor said that according to the rules of the army, a Guard of Honor cannot be given to a soldier who commits suicide. The army guidelines were also shown to the family. After this, an agreement was reached in the talks and the last rites of the soldier were performed.
In conclusion, our investigation reveals that there is no provision for the army to give a Guard of Honor in cases of suspicious death or suicide. It is important to note that the claim suggesting the army refused to give the guard of honour to Amritpal Singh was misrepresented. His death was found to be a suicide, and as such, the customary guard of honour was not extended to him.
Also Read: Neha Singh Peddles Lies About 36% IIT Bombay Students Not Getting Job
This website uses cookies.