Rifleman D Lakshmanan, a native of T Pudupatti village in Madurai district, is among the three army men who were killed during an encounter with terrorists in Rajouri district in Jammu and Kashmir on Thursday morning.
A pall of gloom descended on the village, which is over 30 km from Madurai off the highway connecting Chennai with Kanyakumari, on Thursday after the Indian Army declared Lakshmanan’s death. Villagers said Lakshmanan joined the armed forces in 2019 and had come to the village to meet his parents last month and left only on July 25.
Chief Minister M K Stalin condoled Lakshmanan’s death and announced a solatium of Rs 20 lakh to his family.