On one side is a soldier standing guard in sub-zero temperatures along India's high-altitude frontier, and on the other is his unfinished dream home, brought down by a JCB in minutes. During a demolition drive against an illegal colony within the revenue limits of Sahupura village in Faridabad, the under-construction house of army Naib Subedar Ramkumar was also razed. This is not just the story of a house collapsing, it is the story of a family that has already given one son as a martyr and still has another serving in uniform.
The moment the JCB's arm struck the house, Ramkumar's wife, Rekha Chauhan, broke down and begged officials to spare the home. The women police personnel on the spot moved her away, and a tense scene of arguments and commotion played out for quite a while.
A Year of Effort Reduced to Rubble
Rekha Chauhan says construction on the house began about a year ago and was still underway. Around 12 lakh rupees had already gone into building the 97-gaj house, while the land itself had been bought for 25 lakh rupees. In effect, capital worth 37 lakh rupees turned to dust in an instant.
According to her, Ramkumar is a Naib Subedar in the army and is currently posted in Ladakh. Rekha alleges that when she protested the demolition, the women police personnel pushed and shoved her, leaving her with injuries to her hand and head. She says all she asked was that, with part of the house already broken, the remaining portion be left standing. No notice was shown to the family before the action.
Thirty Years of Service, One Son a Martyr
Rekha's mother-in-law, Ramvati, carries no less pain. She says her son Ramkumar has completed nearly 30 years in the army. The land had been purchased and she has the related documents, but the registry could not be done because the registration process was closed at the time. According to Ramvati, no notice was given before the house was pulled down. Two of her sons have served in the army, one of whom was martyred while on duty, while Ramkumar remains on active service for the country.
The Family Moved In Two Years Ago
Ramkumar's daughter, Injal Chauhan, says the family came to Sahupura about two years ago, which is why they decided to build their own home here. She says her mother, Rekha Chauhan, is a brain tumour patient who has already undergone surgery, with 55 stitches in her head, and is being treated at the Army Hospital in Delhi. Injal alleges that during the protest, the women police personnel knocked her mother to the ground even as she kept explaining her illness.
Injal says the family received no notice, and the home had been built by pooling together money saved from the army job. The application and fee for the registry had already been submitted, but the process was being delayed. In her words, while her father defends the country in minus temperatures, the family was forced to watch their dream home crumble before their eyes.
