Class XII passout, Shubhkaran Singh had taken Rs 10 lakh loan

Tribune News Service

Sukhmeet Bhasin

Bathinda, February 22

Shubhkaran Singh (22) of Ballo village in Rampura Phul sub-tehsil, Bathinda district, who died at Khanauri border on Wednesday, has left behind an unpaid Rs 10 lakh loan and an ailing father.

He was known for his hard work and dedication. Shubhkaran was the primary breadwinner for his family. He was an active member of the BKU (Sidhupur) and went to the protest site on February 13 to help in kitchen work there.

His associates in the village claim that Shubhkaran used to manage livestock along with farming to make both ends meet. “He along with his uncle Charanjit Singh also did contract farming on around 20 acres. He quit studies after Class XII and took up the responsibility of looking after the family as his mother had died and father was suffering from a mental illness,” an associate said.

Villagers said that the family had to sell an acre of its 3.5 acres to run the household and marry off his elder sister. He had reportedly gone to the protest site in the hope that the government would waive farmers’ loans.

Shubhkaran’s uncle Buta Singh said: “On Wednesday morning, he prepared breakfast for himself and other farmers at Khanauri protest site. He called in the morning and said they’d march ahead at 11 am. But an hour later, we learnt that he had been injured... Later, they said he had died.”

Baljit Singh, another uncle, said, “Shubhkaran had always participated in farmers’ agitations. He’d joined the protest against the three farm laws, too.”

Meanwhile, Ballo residents and scores of people from nearby villages visited his house today to condole his death. Senior Congress leader and LoP Partap Singh Bajwa also visited his house and condoled with his family members. Villagers waited for his body to be brought, perhaps unaware that there had been a delay in clearance for an autopsy.

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