Martyr's family dying a thousand deaths

LUCKNOW: When mothers are adamant their sons should not join the armed forces, perhaps they have an inkling of the outcome.
They would know that in all probability, their sons would sacrifice their lives fighting the enemy and thereafter, they would have to fight against the system.
Ask martyr Capt Manoj Kumar Pandey''s family and they would vouch for the fact.
Writing to the prime minister too didn''t help much. Except, if receiving a cold reply from the PMO is considered a response.
Promises remained unfulfilled. Like the gas agency which Manoj''s father Gopichand Pandey got without enough land for a godown. He was more humiliated when a court case was filed against him by the ''owner'' of the Indiranagar plot he received from UP Housing and Development Board (UPHDB) in lieu of the promised house in the Vrindavan Scheme.
The then chairman of UPHDB Mahesh Dutt Sharma had promised a house for the martyr''s family in Vrindavan Scheme. However, says Pandey, UPHDB offered a ''Janta Quarter'' in the scheme. Since he was already living in one, he felt no need to acquire another. Thereafter he was offered a plot in Indiranagar to which he agreed.
However, the plot, apparently, was owned by someone else, who dragged Pandey to court. Pandey then wrote to the prime minister. The PMO forwarded the matter to chief secretary, UP on December 20, 2002 for appropriate action. The matter was then forwarded to secretary, housing and the rest is history.
As for the gas agency, Pandey had to ''buy'' land more than 12 km away on Deva Road for godown as land offered by the Lucknow Development Authority (LDA) at Rs 44 lakh reportedly, was way beyond his means.
Martyr Capt Manoj Kumar Pandey was adorned with the Param Veer Chakra posthumously, for his contribution during the Kargil war during which, as the citation goes, he displayed "most conspicuous bravery, indomitable courage, outstanding leadership and devotion to duty and made the supreme sacrifice in the highest traditions of the Indian Army."
His father recalls: "When Manoj was in Sainik School, he had noted in a diary Waqt aane par mrityu ko bhi jeet loonga (When the time comes, I will win over death too)".