A proud wife of Indian Army soldier, Captain Anshuman Singh, who was Killed in Action in July last year, recalled in a shaky painful voice words of her husband, “I would die with a brass on my chest. I would not die an ordinary death”. Smriti accepted India's second-highest peacetime gallantry award from President Droupadi Murmu on Friday for Captain Singh of the Army Medical Corps who was awarded Kirti Chakra posthumously for exceptional bravery.
She wore a white saree and grief and tears on her face and arrived with her mother-in-law Manju Singh by her side while accepting the award.
Ministry of Defence Spokesperson shares emotional video
The spokesperson of the Ministry of Defence shared a video on X on Saturday (July 6) in which Smriti spoke her heart out about the last conversation she had with her hero husband and how she received the news of his martyrdom. She also talked about how they became soulmates.
"He was very much capable. He would tell me, 'I would die with a brass on my chest. I would not die an ordinary death like no one would know'," Smriti recalled.
And how right she was! The story of Captain Anshuman Singh was not ordinary in any manner. He died while rescuing people from a major fire in July last year.
Video shared widely on social media
The post was widely shared on social media with people hailing the proud and brave wife who fought tears while accepting award by the President who was seen consoling her.
In the video, Smriti was in tears as she shared the story of “love at first sight” and then the eight years of long-distance relationship.
"So, we met on the first day of college. I don't want to be dramatic but it was love at first sight. After a month, he got selected into the AFMC (Armed Forces Medical College). We met at an engineering college but then he got selected in a medical college. Super intelligent guy. From then on, after just one month of meeting, it was a long-distance relationship for eight long years," she recalled.
"Then we decided to get married. Unfortunately, within two months of marriage, he got posted to Siachen. On July 18, we had a long conversation about how our life will be in the next 50 years. We are going to build a house, we are going to have kids, whatnot. On the 19th morning (last year), I got up, and I got a call that he is no more," Smriti said.
She has not been able to come to terms with his loss till, however, now that the Kirti Chakra is in her hand, she now believes that yes, her husband is no more.
"For the first seven to eight hours, we could not accept that anything of that sort has happened. Till date, I am not coping. Just trying to figure out, thinking maybe it is not true. But now that I have the Kirti Chakra in my hand, I realise it is true. But it's okay, he is a hero. We can manage a little of our lives because he has managed a lot. He gave up his life and family so that the other three families could be saved," the proud wife said.
Rashtrapati Bhavan posts on Twitter
In a post on X, formerly Twitter, Rashtrapati Bhavan said, "President Droupadi Murmu conferred Kirti Chakra upon Captain Anshuman Singh, The Army Medical Corps, 26th Battalion The Punjab Regiment, posthumously. Disregarding his own safety, he exhibited exceptional bravery and resolve to rescue many people in a major fire incident."
Along with the post, the Rashtrapati Bhavan also shared a photograph of Captain Singh's wife accepting the Kirti Chakra.
President Murmu conferred 10 Kirti Chakras, including seven posthumously, to personnel of the Army and paramilitary forces for displaying indomitable courage and extraordinary valour in the line of duty.
(With PTI inputs)
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