A couple of days ago, the entire nation was saddened by the story of Captain Anshuman Singh, who lost his life last year trying to save other people from a fire. Their hearts went out to Smriti Singh, Anshuman Singh’s wife, whom he married only 5 months before his death. The two were in a relationship for 8 years before tying the knot.
However, it wasn’t long before Smriti was villainized by not just Anshuman Singh’s parents, but the very people who supported her before – the people of the country.
Ravi Pratap Singh and Manju Singh, the parents of Anshuman Singh, spoke to news channels and claimed that their daughter-in-law doesn’t live with them anymore and receives most of the entitlements after their son’s death. They alleged that she kept the Kirti Chakra with herself and didn’t even let them touch it. They were seeking changes in the Indian Army’s Next of Kin (NOK) criteria for financial assistance to family members in case of a soldier’s death, reported Moneycontrol.
They stressed that their marriage was only of 5 months, they had no child and that they tried to get her married to another son of theirs. They said that Smriti left their home with the Kirti Chakra and his other personal belongings, including a cherished photo album, reported The New Indian Express.
“The criteria set to NOK is not correct. I have also spoken to Defence Minister Rajnath Singh about this. Anshuman’s wife doesn’t live with us now, the marriage was just five months old and there is no child. We only have a photo of our son hanging on the wall with a garland on it,” said Anshuman Singh’s father.
As per the rules of the Indian Army, if something happens to an officer in service, the ex-gratia amount is given to the Next of Kin (NOK). When a person joins the Army, the parents’ names are recorded as the NOK.
When that cadet or officer gets married, the name of the person’s spouse is recorded as the person’s next of kin instead of the parents under Army rules.
As videos of the parents’ interviews went viral on social media, Smriti Singh was slandered mercilessly.
She was called a home-breaker and a gold-digger who did not care for her in-laws and was only interested in the financial benefits which came with the loss of her husband. She was subjected to incessant online trolling and character assassination, as though being a widow in our society isn’t a hard enough battle in itself.
However, throughout all of this, Smriti Singh maintained a dignified silence. Even though several news channels tried reaching out to her, she remained unavailable for comment.
And now, a report has been published by The Hindu which went on to investigate the matter deeper. According to the report, “Army sources clarified that the Army Group Insurance Fund (AGIF) of Rs 1 crore was split between his wife and parents while the pension goes directly to the spouse. In addition, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath had announced Rs 50 lakh in aid, of which Rs 35 lakh went to his wife and Rs 15 lakh to his parents.”
So the claims that Anshuman Singh’s parents made, that they were only left with a garlanded picture of their deceased son and all financial benefits have been directed to Smriti Singh, is false.
It was also revealed that Anshuman Singh’s father is a retired Junior Commissioned Officer (JCO) in the Army and is a pensioner himself and also avails of other benefits as an ex-serviceman.
“Nomination is absolutely the officer’s choice. The spouse has no role in it. She is entitled as a grieving wife If Anshuman’s wife is receiving the benefits, it’s because he designated her in his will. For instance, in the case of Captain Singh, the percentage of AGIF was 50% [between his wife and parents] and for PF it was 100% to his wife,” said an army officer under the condition of anonymity.
Learning about this, several people slammed the parents of the deceased officer for trying to malign the image of Smriti Singh for mere financial gains. Here’s what they had to say:
A wife loses her husband and love of 8 years.. But she is being slandered online and mistreated by parents like this.. She has kept her graceful silence and yet no one calls out the parents ? Seeing the vileness, she must be having her reasons not to live with them .. https://t.co/CQzjnszkMV
— shruti (@artyshruti) July 15, 2024
Imagine just how greedy and resentful of a “bahu” you would have to be to say that you got nothing whilst she got everything. They got at least 50 lakhs! And an additional 15 from the UP govt.
Imagine reducing your son’s sacrifice to just money.
That you wouldn’t care for the… https://t.co/FMEevpXi0y— Hana Mohsin Khan | هناء (@girlpilot_) July 14, 2024
If your children are your cash cows, keep them close to you, preferably locked up, and for God’s sake, don’t let them get married. Even worse, have children of their own. You brought them up, they and their things belong only to you.
Yes? https://t.co/7TbEcqwIvh— ranjona banerji ?? (@ranjona) July 15, 2024
So the parents wanted the whole compensation plus their son’s monthly pension. And they wanted her to marry their other son? They never considered her as one of their own.
Every woman should run away from such a family. https://t.co/OCCSZJI0xn
— JD (@jillsdaniel) July 15, 2024
So many cursed and called her names now they won’t say anything to his parents bcz they are old so respect is imp where is that respect in case of smriti before knowing the whole truth
Patriarchy mindset be like in laws can be toxic but DIL should be with them https://t.co/Y1EVY7PIH0— ????? (@tan28216) July 15, 2024
Can’t believe army had to put the greedy in laws in place . They tainted daughter in law’s name & character so bad , subjected her to so much harassment from incel men . Disgusting family https://t.co/WVJw03gaLQ
— ? (@evepsche) July 15, 2024
They maligned the widow who is already grieving and traumatized, maligned the army rules, and maligned their own late son’s memories. All for money. Shame on such parents. https://t.co/mXZPzr69T2
— Mrs. Hazel (@mrs__hazel) July 15, 2024
What are your views regarding this issue?