Siachen martyr Captain Anshuman Singh's parents want changes in ‘next of kin’ policy. Here's why

“Smriti, our daughter-in-law, receives most entitlements after our son's death. However, she does not live with us,” the Captain's parents told a news channel.

Days after their son received a posthumous Kirti Chakra, India's second-highest peacetime gallantry award, parents of Captain Anshuman Singh have called for changes in the Indian Army's ‘next of kin’ (NOK) policy, under which financial assistance is provided to family members in case of an army personnel's death.

Captain Anshuman Singh (HT Photo)

Speaking to TV9 Bharatvarsh, Ravi Pratap Singh and Manju Singh, the late army officer's parents, put forward their appeal, saying that they want NOK rules to be ‘revisited’ as Smriti Singh, their daughter-in-law, receives most of the entitlements after Anshuman's death, but does not live with them any more.

An on-duty Captain Anshuman Singh died in a fire incident in Siachen in July last year.

“The criteria set for NOK is not correct. I have also spoken to Defence Minister Rajnath Singh regarding this. Anshuman's wife does not live with us now…their marriage was only five months old and they have no child. Though we are the co-recipients of his Kirti Chakra, we only have our son's photo hanging on the wall with a garland on it,” Ravi Pratap Singh told the news channel.

“Hence, we want NOK's definition to be fixed. It should be decided that the martyr's wife must stay with his family, who now has much dependency,” he added.

Manju Singh, meanwhile, said that they are asking for changes in the policy as they do not want other parents like them to ‘suffer.’

What NOK rules say?

When a person joins the army, names of his parents or guardians are recorded as his ‘next of kin,’ i.e., the person's closest relatives. However, when the cadet or the officer marries, the spouse replaces his parents in the NOK record.