Slain circus worker’s wife gets government job in Jammu and Kashmir; Governor Manoj Sinha assures all help to family

Five JeM terrorists were arrested from Anantnag in connection with the victim's killing.

Jammu and Kashmir Lt Governor Manoj Sinha on Wednesday handed over an appointment letter to the wife of circus worker Deepu Kumar who was gunned down by terrorists in Anantnag district last month.

The Lieutenant Governor had announced Rs 5 lakh ex gratia to the victim's family living in abject poverty in a remote village of Udhampur district. Kumar, 27, who worked at a circus in Janglat Mandi area in the south Kashmir district, was killed when he had gone out to buy milk on May 29.

Also Read | Two groups clash in J&K's Samba district, three suffer gunshot injuries

On June 16, the Jammu and Kashmir police said five Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) terrorists were arrested from Anantnag in connection with the killing.

"Lt Governor Manoj Sinha handed over appointment letter to a government job to Sakshi Devi, wife of martyr civilian Deepu Kumar, at Raj Bhawan today," an official spokesperson said.

He said the Lt Governor assured every possible assistance and support to the grief-stricken family members. A week after his killing, Kumar’s wife gave birth to a baby boy in her remote Thial village of Udhampur.

Kumar was the only earning member in the family comprising his ailing father Mashu Ram and blind brother Raju, sister-in-law and their two minor children. The family had moved to the remote village from Kathua over a decade ago. Kumar’s mother died sometime ago. His elder brother, Raju, had lost his eyesight about four years ago, while his father is suffering from hearing impairment.