A pall of gloom descended on Mundhe village in Satara district, the village of Naik Sandip Raghunath Sawant, after he was killed during a counter-insurgency operation in Jammu and Kashmir’s Nowshera sector on Wednesday.
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 in Rajouri district on New Year’s Day.
Sawant and his wife recently had a baby girl. He had come home for his daughter’s naming ceremony, before returning to his post just 15 days ago, one of his relatives said. A day before the incident, Sawant had spoken to his elder brother, the relative said. He said the soldier joined the Army in 2011.
The tragic news on the very first day of the new year has shocked the village, sarpanch Ramesh Lavate said.
According to Army sources, Sawant’s remains will be flown in from Delhi to Pune on Thursday night and will be brought to his village thereafter.
