The wounded jawan filmed begging for help is not dead, the CRPF today clarified
The alleged SOS of a "dying jawan" had Bihar battling a huge controversy before it was revealed as an error; the soldier filmed begging for help after being wounded in a landmine blast didn't die and is in hospital.
"I have been lying here for two hours, there are no doctors, I will die in minutes," the jawan was heard saying in footage distributed to TV channels, which identified him as Indrajit Singh, a commandant of the Central Reserve Police Force or CRPF.
Indrajit was among three killed in a blast in the Aurangabad district on Monday morning. Eight others were wounded when the landmine exploded during a combing operation in the Maoist-affected district, where polling will be held on April 10 for the national election.
"Please save me or I will die. I have little children. No helicopter has come. I appeal to the Prime Minister, President and Home Minister, please save me. I am appealing to my DG (Director General, please help me and save my life," the man pleaded on camera.
The error was finally corrected by the CRPF chief Dilip Trivedi. He said the pleading soldier is Dilip Kumar, a constable who is alive and being treated at a hospital in Ranchi, not Indrajit Singh.
By that time, the footage had been shown in some channels as a "dying man's plea." In election season, political reactions instantly poured in, slamming the state's Nitish Kumar government. The Bihar government even ordered an inquiry into possible lapses and delay in medical help.
District officials said Dilip Kumar was taken to hospital within an hour and then airlifted to Ranchi without delay. He is said to be recovering.