Bank guards’ murder: Bereaved families demand compensation
One of the guards, Mukesh Kumar Yadav , leaves behind a three-year-old daughter Kittu, a wife, aged parents and a brother not fit enough to work. He was the only earning member of the family.
The robbery bid at Punjab National Bank’s (PNB) branch in Sector 1, Noida, early Friday, dashed the hopes and dreams of two families with the murder of the guards posted there.
One of the guards, Mukesh Kumar Yadav , leaves behind a three year-old daughter Kittu, a wife, aged parents and a brother not fit enough to work. He was the only earning member of the family.
“His parents are old and his brother is not well enough to work. His daughter has no idea that he is never coming back,” Sanjeev Kumar, Yadav’s relative, said.
According to Kumar, Yadav was working with the bank for the past two years. “He left his home in Mainpuri two years ago. Since then, he was living in Harola, Sector 5, in a rented accommodation while his wife and daughter lived in Mainpuri. He used to be a day guard and was on night duty only for the past month,” Kumar said.
What shocked the families the most was that they were not informed about the incident by either the bank or the security agency.
“We got to know about the murders only around 11am and that, too, through an acquaintance who was earlier employed with the bank. We haven’t received any compensation from them.The sole earning member of our family was killed and they haven’t even offered us any support,” Kumar said.
After the bodies were handed over to the families following the autopsy, relatives held a protest outside the bank in the evening, demanding compensation.
The family of Mudrika Prasad, the guard who was killed, had a similar tale.
Lal Bihari, Prasad’s brother, said, “He leaves behind three children, all of them students. His wife and kids were completely dependent on him. He had been working for the security agency for the past eight years and they didn’t even have the decency to inform us about the incident. We got to know about it through someone else.”
He said his brother lost his life while trying to prevent the robbery.
“He has scratch marks on his chest. They both (the guards) put up a fight. The least the authorities can do is to help our families financially,” Bihari said, adding they are originally from the Ara district, Bihar.
The relatives said they have the police’s support who have assured them that they will receive due relief.
“We will return after performing the last rites and we hope that we get some financial support,” Kumar said.