Mudavath Sriram and Jyothibai worked as daily wagers in the Satya Sai district of Andhra.
Their only child, M. Murali Naik, had dreamt of joining the Army since he was a child. His parents did whatever they could, despite their hardships, to help him realise that dream. In 2022, he proudly joined the Indian Army.
Murali was grievously injured while bravely returning fire after his unit at the LoC came under heavy attack on 09 Feb. He succumbed to his injuries while being evacuated.
Just a few hours before his balidaan, he called his cousin. The firing was intense, but his voice carried only one worry, his parents. “It’s too heavy… I’m just thinking about Amma and Nanna,” he said. His cousin urged him to stay safe and assured him that if anything happened, the family would take care of his parents.
Try, just try, to imagine the pain of his mother and father right now. You cannot call yourself human if your heart doesn’t sink or your eyes don’t well up looking at their photo.
These humble, struggling parents gave this country their only child, their entire world. Do you think Murali had any personal hatred toward the Pakistani Army? Was he fighting for himself? No. He stood there, for you, for me, for all of us.
And yet, there are those spineless, ungrateful souls who say, “It’s between the Indian and Pakistani armies, people don’t spread hate,” and shamelessly plead with his Pakistani fans not to stop loving him.