Pride & pain: Only child Murali Naik killed at LoC

MUMBAI:/TIRUPATI: Parents of 23-year-old M Murali Naik, who was killed in the cross-border firing at the Line of Control (LoC) in J&K at 3am on Friday, were devastated after receiving news of their son's death.

"We are proud that he was martyred while protecting the country, but as parents, we have paid a huge price. He was our only child and we have lost him," said Murali's father, Shriram, who moved to Mumbai 30 years ago in search of a better livelihood and lives in Ghatkopar's Kamraj Nagar with his wife Jyoti. He was at his hometown in Kallithanda village in Sri Sathya Sai district of Andhra Pradesh for an event when the family was informed of Murali being shot.

Murali spoke to his parents on a video call at around 8am on Thursday. "He had just returned from duty and was still in his uniform. He said he had to go back in the evening. We asked him if he had had his breakfast and that was the last time we saw his face," said Shriram. After hearing the news of his shooting, his parents fainted.

The neighbourhood in Kamraj Nagar was in mourning on Friday after learning that Murali had been shot at during the cross-border firing and died while being shifted to the hospital. Laxman Naik, his maternal uncle, said he was selected as an Agniveer-among the first batch of the central govt recruitment scheme for armed forces.