Villagers demand justice for widow whose only son was killed in Manila three days ago

Our Correspondent

Raikot, March 20

Having lost a youth of a marginal farmer family of the village at the hands of antisocial elements in Manila, the Philippines, residents of Ramgarh Sibian in Ludhiana district have urged the state government and the Centre to come to the rescue of the victim’s family which had sent the deceased to the Philippines in search of employment as agriculture had no more remained remunerative.

Avtar Singh (35), the only brother of three sisters, was stabbed to death by a group of miscreants when he was returning home after the day’s work on Sunday, just three days before he was scheduled to return to his native land.

Stabbed to death

• Avtar Singh (35) was stabbed to death by miscreants when he was returning home after the day’s work in Manila
• Avtar Singh, who had left India in 2016, was scheduled to make his first visit home since then.
• His mother was sad as she could not see the face of her son for one final time as the body had been cremated in Manila.
• The family said Avtar was killed due to ‘defective’ policies of successive governments in the state and Centre.

Avar Singh, who had left India in 2016, was scheduled to make his first visit home since then.

Deep Singh, a cousin of the deceased, said the family was upset as the only breadwinner in the family of widow Kulwant Kaur, was killed in Manila due to ‘defective’ policies of successive governments in the state and the Centre.

“Why did the family headed by Kulwant have to send Avtar Singh to live with his sister in Manila eight years ago? It would not have happened had agriculture been remunerative,” argued Deep Singh, adding that the villagers led by former sarpanch Harbans Kaur had urged the Punjab Government led by Bhagwant Singh Mann and the Union Government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to come to the rescue of the family and provide it with resources for subsistence, as this is the duty of the government.

An inconsolable Kulwant Kaur was cursing the time when she allowed her only son to leave for the Philippines in search of greener pastures.

She was deeply sad that she could not see the face of her son for the one final time as the body had been cremated in Manila.

She rued that she could not able to see her only son get married as family was yet to find a match for him.

As fate would have it, Avtar Singh was killed three days prior to his scheduled journey back-home today.

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